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OMAHA 

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OMAHA MEN 



By JOHN T. BELL 



Omaha and Omaha Men 







By JOHN T. BELL 



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WHY AND WHEREFORE 

I became a resident of Omaha in 1870 and lived here 
for many years. Here I was married, here our four 
children were born and here one of them died. After 
an absence of a number of years, and having sold a 
newspaper business in Oregon and thus being footloose, 
I concluded to return to Omaha and publish something 
of a history of the city I first saw as a boy and when 
it was a very small community. I found that an ex- 
haustive history of Omaha and Douglas County had 
just been published by an eastern firm and that my old 
friend, Attorney Ed. F. Morearty, had recently had 
published an interesting story of Omaha covering 
the period of his residence here, from 1880, and hence 
I modified my plan and concluded to publish a booklet 
of modest size and at a modest price. I have endeavored 
to cover the ground in a concise manner and trust that 
what I have to say will be found of general interest and 
that it may prove to be of historical value to some extent. 

In Washington County when I was a boy I knew a 
man who did quite a business in making wine out of 
wild grapes gathered on the Elkhorn river. His selling 
price was a dollar a gallon and when one of the neighbors 
told him that he could well afford to sell it for less he 
said: "One gallon one dollar; one dollar one gallon. That 
is easy to remember. I am not much on figures and if 
I should charge 85 cents a gallon, for instance, I would 
get all balled up in making change." So with this 
publication: One booklet one dollar; one dollar one 
booklet. 

JOHN T. BELL 

Omaha, July 1917. 



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THE FIRST OMAHA DIRECTORIES 

In the first Omaha directory, published by Charles 
Collins June 12, 1866, much information of value is 
printed concerning the city at that period. It contains 
advertisements to a surprising extent when one considers 
the population of Omaha at that time and is evidence 
of the enterprise and public spirit of the business men. 
But "Charley" Collins had a winning way that was 
irresistible and it is likely that another man would not 
have been so successful as an advertising solicitor for his 
directory. 

Collins tells of a social event affair at the home 
of Dr. George L. Miller which was attended by 
those who had "arrived" at a very early date in Omaha 
history. Among those present were A. J. Poppleton — 
distinguished as "the first man to mail a letter from 
Omaha ;" " Bill ' ' Snowden ' ' who dug the first grave here ; ' ' 
James G. Megeath "the first merchant;" Capt. Downs 
"who carried the stakes and chain to mark the lots and 
blocks in surveying the townsite;" H. D. Johnson 
"the first man green enough to run for Congress from 
Nebraska;" J. W. Paddock "the first clerk of the House 
of Representatives and the first old bachelor of Omaha." 

According to Collins, A. D. Jones was the first white 
man to live on the townsite he having come here in 1853; 
took up a claim and platted a portion of it as "Park 
Wilde." The Indian title to this country had not yet 
been extinguished and Col. Hefner, Indian agent, warned 
him to get away but, in some manner, as Collins says, 
Jones managed to be made postmaster (though Collins 
fails to explain how there could be a postmaster with 
no people to patronize a postofiice) and so was permitted 
to remain and hold on to his claim. 



Omaha and Omaha Men 



Even in 1866 there was a Board of Trade in the 
12-year old town with Augustus Kountze, president, Will 
R. King and J. Patrick, vice presidents, E. P. Child, 
secretary and E. Pundt, treasurer. There is a list of 
66 names printed in the directory and Collins tacks 
on for good measure, "and others." There was also 
an '*01d Settlers Association" of which Dr. Enos Lowe 
was president, Dr. George L. Miller, vice president, 
A. D. Jones, secretary and treasurer. 

In the Collins directory mention is made of Chief 
Justice Wm. Pitt Kellogg. Some years after the Civil 
War but when the "reconstruction" methods adopted 
by Congress for the purpose of making life still more 
of a burden to the South were still in force, I was in New 
Orleans. Kellogg was then military Governor of Louisi- 
ana, or perhaps he had been elected by the vote of the 
colored people and carpet baggers. Knowing of his 
former residence in Omaha I called to see him. He 
may have been an excellent gentleman but he certainly 
was not popular with the white citizens of New Orleans. 
The Governor's office was in the Custom House on Canal 
street. At the entrance stood members of the Met- 
ropolitan police; along the corridor were others. I 
had a pleasant call during which he inquired about men 
he knew in Omaha and as to the growth of the town. 
He invited me to take lunch with him and when we 
passed out into the corridor a policeman put himself 
in front of us, another in the rear and one on each side. 
In this fashion we proceeded down the stairs and out 
into the street and thence to a restaurant. There I 
left him as I had already been to lunch but the policemen 
were to wait for him and escort him back to his office. 



Omaha a Railroad Center 



OMAHA A RAILROAD CENTER 

The history of Omaha in respect of railroads dates 
back to December 1st, 1863, on which day some spades- 
ful of earth were removed at a point near the river and 
just north of the location of the old Union Pacific shops 
on which occasion there were speeches and music. It 
was a happy day for this then small community for it 
inaugurated the construction of the Union Pacific rail- 
road, destined to connect with the Central Pacific away 
out in Utah, the two to become the first line of steel 
to reach the Pacific ocean. May 10th, 1869, the golden 
spike was driven at Promontory Point, Utah, which made 
connection of the roads which have been such a tre- 
mendous factor in the development of the west. 

The tying together of the two roads thus consummated 
was the subject several years afterward of a painting 
of great historical value. This was done on the order 
of Leland Stanford, president of the Central Pacific, 
and the conspicuousness this painting gave to Mr. Stan- 
ford offended his associate, Collis P. Huntington, for 
the latter was relegated to a minor place in the group 
which included distinguished men from many parts 
of the country. The relations between the two were 
not mollified when Stanford became a United States 
Senator from California, for Huntington insisted that 
he should have kept out of politics. The "Big Four" 
who built the Central Pacific were Stanford, Huntington, 
Mark Hopkins and Charles Crocker and their com- 
bined fortune, when they organized their company, 
it is said did not exceed $150,000. Without doubt 
Huntington was the strongest one of the four. He was 
a man of extraordinary energy. Even after he had be- 
come many times a millionaire he did not abandon his 



Omaha and Omaha Men 



early habits of economy. It is said of him that one day 
he remarked: "Nobody can track me down Market 
street, San Francisco, by the quarters I have dropped 
on the way. ' ' 

The first public mention made of a railway to the 
Pacific was in a little weekly paper printed in Washtenaw 
County, Michigan, in 1829. The writer proposed a 
line to start from New York City with a terminus in 
"The Oregon Country" — in which region there were 
then only a few trappers and hunters in the employ of 
the Hudson Bay Company. All of the "available 
water ways" between those points were to be utilized, 
according to the writer of the article referred to, and a 
land grant of modest scope to be made by Congress was 
suggested. It is not likely that this man was living in 
later years when, in aid of the construction of a road 
from Omaha to Sacramento, Congress made a grant 
of 19,300,844 acres of land, and the use of government 
bonds on long time to the amount of $53,121,632 and, 
in addition, branches of those two roads were given 
32,536,918 acres of land and bond issue aid to the amount 
of $64,623,512, making a grand total of 51,837,762 
acres of land and bond aid to the amount of $117,745,144. 

In 1846 Asa Whitney, a wealthy man of New York 
City, published pamphlets, made speeches and appealed 
to Congress in behalf of the building of a road to the 
Pacific. A number of bills having this object in view 
were introduced in Congress, but southern members of 
Congress insisted that the road should not have its 
starting point farther north than Memphis, Tennessee. 
After several years of vain effort Whitney lost his fortune 
and when he died he was a milk peddler in Washing- 
ton, D. C. 



Omaha a Railroad Center 



In 1849 William Tecumsah Shermeji, then a first 
lieutenant of engineers stationed at Monterey, California, 
sent, under instructions from his superior officer, two 
engineer officers of the army to survey a line through 
the Sierra Nevada Mountains for a Pacific railroad. In 
a letter subsequently written by him to his brother John 
he said: "The building of a Pacific railroad is a work 
for giants" and that the cost of it would not fall below 
200 million dollars. 

On December 16th, 1850, Senator Benton introduced 
a bill in the Senate providing for "the location and 
construction of a great central national highway from 
St. Louis to San Francisco bay." The bill provided 
not only for a railway track but also for a "common" 
road, with "a margin for magnetic telegraph lines" all 
to run parallel and to cover a line a mile wide and 1600 
miles long. The Senator explained, in his bill, that some 
persons would like to ride in a railway train, some would 
prefer to go in other vehicles and some on horseback, 
while still others would prefer to walk. The road was 
to be built by the government and owned by the govern- 
ment. An appropriation of land in a strip across the 
country 100 miles wide was to be made for the main line 
with an appropriation of a like strip half the width for 
several proposed branches. The common road was 
"to be finished next summer." The railway construc- 
tion, it was conceded, would take a longer time. 

It is a fact not generally known that the Union Pacific 
Company secured from the Omaha City Council a 
franchise to operate their cars on Fourteenth street 
from the northern to the southern limits of the city. 
Application was made to the Council Sept. 1st, 1866, 
by A. J. Poppleton, attorney for the company, for this 



10 Omaha and Omaha Men 

privilege which was to cover freight as well as passenger 
trains, the cars to be run at a rate of not more than five 
miles an hour and the track to conform "as far as prac- 
ticable" to the grade then existing on that street. Mr. 
Poppleton explained that this application was made in 
consequence of the difficulty of operating the trains on 
the bottom land. At the same time he asked for like 
use of Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth 
and Thirteenth streets; Capitol avenue, Davenport, Chi- 
cago, Cass, California, Webster, Burt and Cuming within 
an area as indicated by a blue print which he presented 
to the Council. On the following day Mayor Lorin 
Miller signed the ordinance in compliance with the in- 
structions of the Council. A year previously, Sept. 
11th, Mr. Poppleton asked the Council to grant right 
of way for the company to operate its trains on Capitol 
avenue, Douglas, Chicago, Cass, California, Webster, 
Burt and Seventh to Eleventh, inclusive, within an area 
marked in a blue print which accompanied this appli- 
cation and he also requested that the city vacate the 
public streets thus outlined and that all of the lots within 
said area be conveyed to the company. It does not appear 
from the records that any action was taken by the Council 
in this regard and that this was the case is borne out 
by the fact of the application made the following year. 
Omaha has now connection with the entire country 
by means of the following railroads: The Union Pacific, 
the Chicago and Northwestern; the Chicago, Burlington 
and Quincy; the Chicago and Rock Island; the Chicago, 
Milwaukee and St. Paul; the Chicago and Great Western, 
the Chicago, St. Paul and Minneapolis, the Illinois 
Central; the Wabash and the Missouri Pacific. The 
Union Pacific company recently completed a headquarters 
building which cost a million and a half. 



Formerly Ten Counties U 



FORMERLY TEN COUNTIES 

When Judge George B. Lake was the judge of the 
district which included this county he had nine other 
counties under his jurisdiction. In 1876 the district 
was reduced to Sarpy, Douglas, Washington and Burt. 
Judge Lake possessed not only the judicial temperament 
but also executive ability to an unusual degree hence 
the business in his court was proceeded with rapidly 
but without sacrificing any of the interests of litigants. 
Before Nebraska became a state Judge Lake was one 
of three Territorial judges— the three constituting the 
Supreme Court of that period and for a number of years 
after Nebraska entered statehood. 

In 1876 Col. James W. Savage became judge of this 
district, then reduced to four counties. His competitor 
for election in 1875, was John M. Thurston and it was 
much to the credit of the Colonel that, in a district 
overwhelmingly republican he, a democrat, should de- 
feat an attorney of such distinguished ability as John 
M. Thurston. In the campaign four years later when 
Judge Savage was a candidate for re-election his opponent 
was Charles A. Baldwin. In that contest Judge Savage 
was again the victor and thus he served for eight years 
in succession. 

James Neville was the second to become the judge 
of this district after its reduction to four counties. He 
was content with one term and devoted his attention 
and time to real estate investments in Omaha. Early 
in that career he acquired a habit of buying corner lots 
and in that line he displayed a judgment of such a degree 
of excellence that he is now one of the very wealthy 
men of Omaha. As illustrating the ups and downs of 



12 Omaha and Omaha Men 



life he tells a story of going to the door of his home one 
evening in answer to the ringing of the bell and was 
there confronted by a hobo attired in rags. This man 
Judge Neville had formerly known as one of the leading 
young lawyers of Omaha and with a most promising 
future. Of course the errand of his visitor was to secure 
some financial aid and there is no doubt but that his 
mission was successful. 

This judicial district, formerly embracing ten 
counties, has been cut down to three — Douglas, Wash- 
ington and Burt — and there are now seven judges where 
there was but one. Succeeding Judge Neville the fol- 
lowing named have been elected as judges of this dis- 
trict: Eleazer Wakeley, Louis A. Groff, M. R. Hopewell, 
George W. Doane, Joseph R. Clarkson, Herbert J. Davis, 
Frank S. Irvine, W. W. Keysor, Cunningham R. Scott, 
Charles Ogden, W. C. Walton, Edward R. Dufifie, George 
W. Ambrose, Joseph H. Blair, Clinton N. Powell, Jacob 
L. Fawcett, W. W. Slabaugh, Ben S. Baker, Charles T. 
Dickenson, Irving F. Baxter, Guy R. C. Reed, George 
A. Day, A. C. Troup, E. M. Bartlett, Howard Kennedy, 
A. L. Sutton, Wm. G. Sears, Wm. A. Redick, Charles Les- 
lie, James P. English, Arthur Ferguson and Lee S. Estelle. 

STREET PAVING INAUGURATED 

Farnam was the first street in Omaha to be paved 
but it proved an unsatisfactory job and was replaced 
with asphalt. But the first paving of that kind was 
laid on Douglas between Fourteenth and Sixteenth 
under the supervision of the late John Grant for the 
Barber Company. 

Along in the 80's several streets were paved with 
red cedar blocks which cost the adjacent property owners 



Hotels of Former Years 13 

e — '• ' ■ — r 

a considerable sum of money and in a few years the blocks 
were so rotten that the pavement was replaced with 
asphalt and vitrified brick. Sherman avenue was paved 
for a long distance with the cedar blocks with disastrous 
results. At this date Omaha has 220 miles of paved 
streets and ten miles of paved alleys. The material 
used is asphalt, stone, brick and brick blocks, creosoted 
wood blocks, asphaltic concrete and a little more than 
three miles of macadam. The total cost to January 
11th, 1917, was $11,681,116. 

HOTELS OF FORMER YEARS 

The first hotel in Omaha was the Douglas House 
on the southwest corner of Harney and Thirteenth. 
Just across Harney was the Farnam and on the same side 
of the street, east of Thirteenth, the St. Charles, of which 
M. W. Keith was proprieor. He was accustomed to 
note the arrival of meal hours by sounding a big gong. 
The Herndon was also built at an early date but its career 
as a hotel was brief. The Hamilton on the south side 
of Douglas near Fourteenth and the Tremont on the 
same side of Douglas, between Twelfth and Thirteenth, 
were popular hotels many years ago. The former was 
kept at one time by Alonzo Perkins and there was born 
his daughter Fannie, now a ticket agent for the South- 
ern Pacific at Portland, of which city Judge Perkins 
and his estimable wife are residents. For many years 
he was County Judge of Washington County. 

On the lot occupied now by the McCague bank 
building formerly lived William Floerke, a German. 
He put up on this lot in 1860 a two-story frame building 
which he named the Union Hotel and was doing a good 
business when suit was brought against him on the ground 



14 Omaha and Omaha Men 

? ' ' ' ■ — ' 

that his title to the lot was defective. The result of the 
trial was that he lost the property. He and his wife 
had long practiced economy with a view of putting up 
this building and they were the subjects of general sym- 
pathy in the community. 

One of the buildings removed when the site of the 
present postoffice was secured was a large frame structure 
known as the Planters House where a hotel was conducted 
for many years, one of the proprietors being a man of 
the name of Morrison who had immense eyebrows. 

The Cozzens Hotel, a three-story building which 
was located on Ninth and Harney, was the product 
of a spell of ill-nature on the part of George Francis 
Train. He was not entirely suited with the management 
of the Herndon House, where he was boarding, and de- 
clared that he would have a rival hotel built in 60 days. 
He bought the lot, set a big force of men at work and, 
it is said, the job was completed in the time stated. He 
brought here as proprietor of the hotel a man of the name 
of Cozzens, who was a hotel man of fame at Long Branch, 
New York, but Omaha was too small a town for him and 
he did not remain long. 

HISTORIES OF OMAHA 

The first effort to put in book form some facts regard- 
ing Omaha was by Attorney James M. Wool worth. In 
1857 he had printed in New York City a small volume 
devoted chiefly to advertising the resources and advan- 
tages of Nebraska Territory and a small amount of space 
was given to Omaha. In 1876 Alfred Sorenson published 
a history of the city and in 1889 he published another 
of a more extended scope. In 1894 a New York publish- 



Histories of Omaha 15 



ing firm published a history of Omaha of which Judge 
James W. Savage and John T. Bell were editors. This 
year an excellent history of Omaha and Douglas County 
was published by an eastern firm with Arthur Wakeley 
as general supervisor. It consists of two volumes. 

IN A CLASS BY HIMSELF 

The late John I. Redick was in a class by himself. 
He was born in Wooster, Ohio, and was apprenticed to 
a blacksmith. Shoeing a horse one day, while still but 
little more than a boy, he struck his hand with the hammer 
inflicting an injury that left that hand permanently 
crippled. Flinging the hammer away he said he was 
done with blacksmithing. 

He came to Omaha a young man just admitted to 
practice law in the 50's and at once became a force in 
the building up of the new town. He also displayed his 
confidence in its future by investing in real estate and this 
was his custom for many years with the result that he 
left to his family much valuable property. His son, 
William A., also became a lawyer, and for many years 
has been one of the judges of this district. The younger 
sons are prominent in business circles. 

In the 80's Mr. Redick went to Los Angeles and was 
active in organizing a bank in that city of which he be- 
came president but his attachment for Omaha pulled 
him back to this city. He served one term as United 
States judge in Mexico; one term was all he wanted 
and back he came to Omaha. 

As a jury lawyer Judge Redick never had a superior 
in this state. He always made his client's case his own 
and threw himself into it with the greatest enthusiasm. 



16 Omaha and Omaha Men 

In addressing a jury he would ask the court to allow him 
to take off his coat. As a rule this was granted, but 
one day I was present in the United States court room in 
Lincoln where he was trying a case. The Judge was 
imported from another district and his sense of dignity 
was so extreme that he refused this request. If Judge 
Redick lost the case it is reasonable to credit his de- 
feat to his being handicapped by being compelled to keep 
his coat on. 

The first attempt to secure water for fire protection 
was made by the city entering into a contract with a man 
known as "Witch Hazel Hammond" for the construction 
of a number of cisterns on . Farnam street by which 
water was first to be pumped from the river by the fire 
hose to the cistern nearest the river and thence from 
one to another until the top of the hill on Farnam had 
been practically reached. The contract provided, as 
the councilmen understood, for cisterns of a uniform 
depth and width but when the cisterns were completed 
the city refused payment for the reason that some of 
the cisterns, if not all of them, were not full width at the 
bottom but were provided with a sort of a shoulder all 
around a few feet from the bottom where the change in 
width was made. 

Suit was brought on the contract by Hammond in 
the United States Court with Redick & Connell as his 
attorneys. The case was tried before a jury and in 
summing up Mr. Redick referred to this difference in 
the width of the cisterns and he said something like this: 
"Gentlemen of the jury; objection has been made to 
this shoulder in the cisterns but this was put there for 
a purpose and that purpose was to lift the water up." 
This was accompanied by Judge Redick throwing his 



In a Class By Himself 17 

open hands with an upwards motion as though in the 
very act of ''lifting the water up." I remember that 
when this startling and unique explanation was made 
his associate counsel was compelled to put his hand to 
his face to conceal his emotions. Hammond won out 
but it is likely that his success was due, not for the aid 
received by these useful ** shoulders" in the cisterns 
but to some material printed in very small type at the 
bottom of the contract and which had probably been 
overlooked by the city councilmen. 

Judge Redick was a very witty man and always 
enjoyed a joke even when he might be the subject of it. 
In a trial held in the United States district court a number 
of years ago Redick and Connell represented some clients 
who were suing for commissions they claimed they had 
earned in making a sale which the owner of the property 
refused to stand by. In examining Judge Wakeley as 
to the custom of land agents and lawyers in an early 
day Judge Redick said: "Was it not the rule at that 
period for a lawyer to receive a money fee and part of 
the land also in case he won a suit of the character of 
the one on trial?" Judge Wakeley said that it was. 
"And was it not sometimes the case that a lawyer would 
receive a money fee and also take all of the land where 
he won the case?" "That may have been the custom 
in your office," replied the witness, "but it was not in 
ours." 



Dr. Victor Coffman sold out his practice here and 
moved to San Francisco, California, a number of years 
ago. He did not remain long and when he came back 
he said he wouldn't live in a place where a man had to 
blanket a horse in July. 



18 Omaha and Omaha Men 



DOUGLAS COUNTY'S THREE COURT HOUSES 

The first court house erected in this county stood at 
the northeast corner of Farnam and Sixteenth. It 
was a two-story building and the two lots devoted to 
it were given the county by the townsite company. 
The remainder of the block, six lots, was sold at public 
sale to various persons, the total amount realized being 
$11,360. A conservative estimate of the present value 
of that property, exclusive of buildings, is $750,000. 
The court house cost $40,450. 

In 1878 the block bounded by Seventeenth, Eighteenth, 
Farnam and Harney was bought for $35,419 and a build- 
ing erected thereon at a cost of $204,787. The brick 
Used were made out of the earth removed from the site. 
A change in the grade of Farnam street left the building 
at an inconvenient height and the growth of the city in 
the passing years called for a more modern structure 
and the old building, completed in 1885, gave way to the 
splendid court house now occupying that block and which 
cost in excess of a million dollars. 

Many interesting cases were tried in the old court 
house on Sixteenth and Farnam. One of these was 
when a young man of the name of Doran was on trial 
for killing Constable Jerry McCheane and severely stab- 
bing two other men who were with the constable when 
he was attempting to serve a warrant on Doran. John 
C. Cowin was then district attorney and the accused 
was defended by Col. James W. Savage (just previous 
to his being elected judge of the District Court) and 
Charles H. Brown. Doran was a fine-looking young 
man* with blue eyes. In closing his argument Col. 
Savage said something like this: ''Gentlemen of the 



Built Telegraph Lines 19 

jury: My task is about done and whatever your verdict 
may be I am conscious that I have fulfilled my duty 
and that the mild blue eyes of this defendant will never 
look upon me in reproach." In opening his closing ad- 
dress to the jury Mr. Cowin referred to the closing on 
the other side in words of appreciation of its power and 
eloquence and added: **But gentlemen if you acquit 
this young man and his mild blue eyes ever rest upon 
me again God help my wife and children." The jury 
returned a verdict of guilty and Doran was sent to the 
recently-built states prison at Lincoln from which he 
soon made his escape. 

BUILT TELEGRAPH LINES 

The name of Edward Creighton, of Omaha, will 
be remembered when that of many a man more pre- 
tentious has been forgotten. In 1861 he built the tele- 
graph line from Julesburg, Colorado, to Salt Lake City, 
and also organized the company that provided the nec- 
essary capital. A story is told of the high sensitive 
honor of an Indian who was present when a treaty was 
held with the Indians in order to get their consent for 
the construction of this line across their reservation. 
One of the commissioners told them that if the line was 
put up the Great Father at Washington could talk over a 
wire with a man on the shore of the Pacific ocean. There- 
upon one of the Indians covered his face with his blanket. 
When asked why he did that he said he was ashamed. 
"And what are you ashamed of?" was asked. "I'm 
ashamed of that big lie," he said. 

In 1863 Mr. Creighton added to his renown by build- 
ing a telegraph line from Julesburg to Denver. The 
company owning these western lines was called the 



20 Omaha and Omaha Men 

Atlantic & Pacific and Edward Rosewater was for a 
number of years manager for the company at Omaha. 

Coming to Omaha with the pioneers Mr. Creighton 
was, until the day of his death, one of its leading citizens. 
He was a man of great wealth and after his death the 
public spirit he had displayed was followed in like manner 
by his brother, John A. Creighton, who had Creighton 
College and the St. Joseph Hospital built in memory 
of Edward Creighton who left, in addition to John A., 
three brothers — James, Joseph and John D. — all of whom 
were enterprising and public-spirited men. 

Mrs. Thomas McShane, who came to Omaha in the 
60's with her husband and family, was a sister of Edward 
Creighton, and she and her family shared in the large 
fortune he left. Her sons were James H., Edward, 
Thomas, John A. and Felix. John A. McShane has 
been especially prominent in various business enter- 
prises. He was the owner at one time of the Omaha 
Herald and served as a member of the State Senate and 
as Congressman. He has been an operator on a large 
scale in real estate and his life has been one of great 
activity and also of usefulness to this community. 

OMAHA BELT LINE 

It was along in the 80's that the Belt line of railway, 
starting north of the city, and ending at South Omaha 
was built. At the outset of the proceedings Jay Gould 
was president of the Union Pacific and it was understood 
that the road was being built for that company. Before 
the work of the appraisers appointed to fix damages to 
property owners affected was completed Charles Francis 
Adams became president of the Union Pacific. By that 



Omaha Belt Line 21 

time the money paid out amounted to $75,000 and, 
it was said, the new management of the Union Pacific 
notified Mr. Gould that the expense would not be paid 
by that company as it had no use for the road and there- 
upon Mr. Gould turned the property over to the Mis- 
souri Pacific Company. It is possible that this account 
is erroneous but it is given as being the one current 
a number of years ago. 

William L. Adams, now a resident of California, 
was the engineer who laid out the line and the Board 
of Appraisers, appointed by County Judge A. M. 
Chadwick, Dec. 1st, 1883, consisted of the following 
named: A. R. Dufrene, J. H. Brackin (the former owner 
of the land now known as Forest Lawn Cemetery), 
William Coburn, C. H. Dewey, John H. Erck and John 
T. Bell. It was about a year from the date of their 
appointment until the appraisers finished their task as 
they would be called out at intervals by Mr. Adams to 
pass upon the property covered by sections of the pro- 
files. 



At the time A. J. Hanscom was about to put up some 
buildings on the north side of Farnam between Four- 
teenth and Fifteenth a man representing a company 
which constructed elevators happened to come to town. 
In making inquiries as to prospective buildings he was 
told to go and see Mr. Hanscom. In view of the fact 
that the Hanscom buildings were to be only one story 
high those who remember how quick on the trigger as 
to temper A. J. Hanscom was can imagine the reception 
that elevator agent received when he made his mission 
known. 



22 Omaha and Omaha Men 

OMAHA'S PARKS AND BOULEVARDS 

The park and boulevard system of this city is one 
of the most complete for a city of the size of this in the 
country. Perhaps I may be pardoned in giving the 
substance of a letter I sent to the Omaha Bee last year 
in this connection. A number of years ago I called at 
the market garden of Henry M. Hurlbut and Henry B. 
Wiley, then carried on by them in Horbach's addition 
north of town. They were putting up cucumber pickles 
and to my suggestion that there must be money in that 
industry they replied that there was and that if they had 
more capital they would engage in it extensively the 
next year. My proposition that I buy a third interest 
in their business was accepted and the deal was made. 

In course of time it was found necessary to secure 
land of our own and we bought 75 acres three miles west 
of town on the extension of Leavenworth street. There 
was a stream fed by springs running across this tract 
and we decided to offer that part of the property to the 
city for a public park. We also induced Lyman Rich- 
ardson, Leopold Doll and Wm. Snyder, who owned 
land east and west of us, to join in this donation. We 
gave 20 acres and the others 35 acres as I remember it. 
Of course this proffer was accepted and was followed 
by the voting of bonds to the extent of $400,000 to pur- 
chase additional land for park purposes, options having 
been obtained on the following tracts: 

The remaining 55 acres of the Bell, Hurlbut & Wiley 
property and 153 acres additional of Messrs. Richardson 
& Doll, which combined property, with the donated por- 
tion, is now Elmwood Park and comprises 208 acres; 
the Distin tract of 107 acres to the northward 



Omaha's Parks and Boulevards 23 

which is now Fontenelle Park; 78 acres off to the 
eastward and nearer the Missouri river owned by 
Mr. Parker and now the George L. Miller Park, and a 
property known as Riverside Park south of the city. 
The bonds carried by a handsome majority and sold 
for a premium of $26,000. 

Before the purchase of these properties was consum- 
mated some complaint was made as to the prices at which 
the options had been obtained by the City Council. 
The park commission held the business up for a time in or- 
der that other proffers might be secured of land suitable for 
park purposes and at less cost but none were presented to 
the board. So far as the price on the Bell, Hurlbut & 
Wiley property was concerned it was not excessive. After 
donating the 20 acres the owners of that land had a portion 
of their land platted into building lots confident that the 
location of the park adjoining would make that a de- 
sirable residence district and that very satisfactory 
prices could be obtained for the lots. The money thus 
expended in platting was, of course, lost and, in addition 
in the sale of the remainder of their property their val- 
uable gardening industry was sacrificed after several 
years and considerable money had been devoted to put- 
ting the land in high-class condition for gardening pur- 
poses. 

Omaha has now 20 parks of varying size and many 
miles of boulevards. When the donation referred to 
was made there was only one — Hanscom Park. Jef- 
ferson square, now improved as a park, was merely an 
open block of land. Viewing the situation in this month 
of July, 1917, it may not be out of place to say that at 
least the inception of the splendid park system owned 
by Omaha came from a talk about cucumber pickles 



24 Omaha and Omaha Men 



out on Horbach's addition north of town a number of 
years ago. And it is a rather interesting fact that not a 
cucumber was pickled as a result of that talk. 

FOR A YOKE OF OXEN 

The present site of the First National Bank, with 
its building towering skyward, formerly belonged to the 
city and had upon it a small building occupied by Fire 
Engine Company No. 1. It was sold to the Board of 
Trade, organized in the 70's for, as I recollect it, $13,000. 
The upper floor of the building was used as a restaurant 
and had a large patronage. Thomas Gibson was active 
in organizing the Board of Trade. He was a man of 
amazing energy and, with W. N. Byers, an Omaha 
man, published the first paper established in Denver 
in 1859, the material being hauled from Omaha in a wagon. 
Out in Oregon I met a man who said that his grandfather 
owned that lot in an early day and that he traded it for 
a yoke of oxen. 

FARNAM STREET AT AN EARLY DATE 

Farnam has always been the chief business street of 
Omaha. Its first building of importance was the Herndon 
House, built for hotel purposes, by Dr. Miller and Lyman 
Richardson. It was decades ahead of Omaha's need 
in that line and in a few years passed to the ownership 
of the Union Pacific company. The first brick store 
building on the street was erected by Vincent Burkley. 
It was two stories high and the lower floor was used 
by Mr. Burkley for a clothing store and the upper for 
a residence. Here Frank Burkley was born and in Omaha 
he has lived ever since and is now at the head of a big 
Business in the printing and lithographing line and also 



Farnam Street At An Early Date 25 



the manufacture of envelopes. The Burkley store was 
on the north side of the street between Tenth and Eleventh. 

On the next block west was the Pioneer block in which 
William Ruth, brother-in-law of the Kountze Brothers, 
conducted a clothing business for many years. Other 
old-timers on that side of the street were: Shoaf Brothers, 
Billiard Hall; Pundt & Koenig, grocers; Irwin & Ellis, 
hardware; Morgan & Gallagher, wholesale grocers; 
Tootle & Maul, dry goods; Woolworth and Caulfield and 
Catlin's bookstores; Ketchum & Burns, crockery and 
glassware; Lacey McCormick & Co., grocers; Julius 
Meyers, Indian goods; L. Ruf, tailor; John Baumer 
and Thos. Shaw, jewelers; Frank Ramge, tailor; Louis 
Beindorf, bakery; J. H. F. Lehman, dry goods; the 
State Bank; Ed Maurer, restaurant. The Bee offtce was 
for many years on the north side of Farnam between 
Ninth and Tenth. 

On the south side of the street were: Morris Elgutter, 
clothing; Adam Snyder, meat market; Huntington & 
Sharp, hides; J. J. & D. C. Sutphen, cigars and notions; 
G. H. & J. S. Collins, saddlery and harness; Fred Schneider, 
hardware; Thomas Riley, wholesale liquors; Dewey & 
Stone, furniture; Will R. King, grocer; Chas. Shiverick, 
furniture; Clark & French, grocers; M. Hellman, cloth- 
ing; Stephens & Wilcox, dry goods; J. K. Ish, druggist; 
Milton Rogers, stoves and tinware; Her & Co., wholesale 
liquors; Max Meyer and Bros., jewelry. 

It is not claimed that this is a complete list of the 
old-time business men on Farnam street but it covers 
the subject in a general way. 

It was in 1869 that Andrew Murphy began wagon- 
work at the northwest corner of Harney and Fourteenth. 
He is now extensively engaged in the auto-truck line. 



26 Omaha and Omaha Men 

OMAHA'S PIONEER ORATOR 

General Silas A. Strickland was not only an Omaha 
pioneer of the 50's and a United States district attorney 
and adjutant of the First Nebraska Infantry in the 
Civil War and lieutenant colonel of the Fiftieth Ohio 
Infantry and a brevet brigadier general in command 
of a brigade during that war, but he was also the 
owner of a silver tongue which made him famous through- 
out the state. 

A case which attracted wide attention during General 
Strickland's term as United States district attorney 
was the trial in Omaha of four Pawnee Indians on the 
charge of murdering Edward McMurty on Grand Island 
in the Platte river in 1869. The trial of the case was con- 
cluded Nov. 10th of that year and all four of the accused 
were found guilty. They were confined in the county 
jail, then on the first floor of the old court house at the 
intersection of Farnam and Sixteenth the present 
site of the Paxton block, and that night two of the In- 
dians made their escape. General Strickland was assisted 
in the prosecution of the case by Charles A. Baldwin 
and Col. C. S. Chase represented the Indians. 

General Strickland died a number of years ago but 
Mrs. Strickland is still a resident of Omaha, making 
her home with her daughter, Mrs. James B. Haynes. 
General Strickland was the President of the Constitu- 
tional Convention of 1871. 



Samuel B. Jones says that his father was the first 
advertising solicitor for Horace Greeley's New York 
Tribune and that his father's brother, employed in a 
New York job printing shop, gave to Horace the first 
printer's case he ever had in that city. 



Some Additions To Omaha 27 

SOME ADDITIONS TO OMAHA 

The original townsite company displayed modesty 
in regard to the area covered in their platting but as the 
years progressed additions and subdivisions were tacked 
on until now the boundaries of Omaha cover about 
36 square miles. The company itself set the pace in this 
respect by platting into blocks, but not subdividing 
into lots, a considerable tract of land on the north which 
was popularly known as "Script Town" under the belief 
that it was specially designed for use in securing votes 
in the first legislature in Omaha's favor in locating the 
capital of the Territory. 

The Kountze brothers and Samuel Rogers owned 
land immediately on the south of the original townsite 
and a considerable portion of this was sold to George 
Francis Train who platted it and called it "Credit Fon- 
cier Addition." On this he built ten houses, framed in 
Chicago, and he also had the brick sent from that city for 
chimneys and foundations. He had paid only a part 
of the purchase price on the land and eventually lost 
it by foreclosure proceedings. Capitol addition, to the 
west of the original townsite, was platted in an early day. 

Then followed numerous additions — Ragan's, ShuU's, 
Nelson's, John I. Redick's, George Armstrong's, E. V. 
Smith's, Byron Reed's, J. C. Wilcox's, John A. Hor- 
bach's, Chas. E. Perkins*, W. F. Sweesy's, Hanscom 
Place, West End by George L. Miller and Lyman Rich- 
ardson; Boggs & Hill's two additions; two "Hillside 
additions " and Terrace addition by A. E. Touzalin of 
the B. & M. railroad company, and others. 

Along in the 80's many more additions were made — 
north, south and west — Walnut Hill by Dr. Mercer; 



28 Omaha and Omaha Men 

Orchard Hill, by Alex H. Baker; West Side by S. H. H. 
Clark, Supt. of the Union Pacific; Frank Murphy, John 
A. McShane, Nathan Merriam, M. H. Goble, John Eddy 
and John T. Bell; Poppleton Park, by A. J. Poppleton; 
Kountze Place, by Herman Kountze. This tract consists of 
160 acres and for many years was devoted to the growing 
of corn. Poppleton Park and Walnut Hill are on land 
taken by Dr. Enos Lowe and his brother, Jesse Lowe, 
as claims before the government surveys were made. 
Mr. Poppleton's purchase was made of Gen. W. W. 
Lowe, son of Dr. Lowe, and consisted of 110 acres. He 
sold 26 acres of this for $26,000, which covered the sum 
he paid for the tract, and the remainder of 80 acres he 
platted. 

In an early day O. B. Selden, an Omaha pioneer, 
subdivided his farm of 120 acres west of town into blocks 
of four acres each, including the middle of the streets, 
which property is now the choice residence district of 
Omaha. I bought one of those blocks of Mr. Selden 
for $2,000 and sold it to Kirkendall, the shoe dealer. 
Our home was for many years on the Park avenue and 
Leavenworth corner of Touzalin's Terrace addition, 
the lot being 96 feet front on Park avenue with a depth 
of 140 feet. One year, by reason of changes in grade 
and street improvements in that vicinity, the taxes on 
our home were over $1,600. 

P. C. Himebaugh bought about 100 acres of the Har- 
rison Johnson farm west of town, in the 80's and platted 
it into large lots which have since been subdivided. 
John A. McShane also bought a portion of that farm. 
Along about that time George W. Ames and his father, 
George C., secured the right from Leroy G. Tuttle, of 
Washington City, to sell his farm of 160 acres northwest 



Some Additions To Omaha 29 

of town at $100 an acre in five acre tracts. The demand 
was of an encouraging character and the selling price 
was raised to $125 an acre. The land has since been 
subdivided into lots. I note that the History of Omaha 
and Douglas County says that Ames avenue, in that 
tract, was so named in honor of Oakes Ames, who was 
prominent in the building of the Union Pacific railroad. 
This is an error. The two Ames, father and son, clapped 
their own name on that avenue and, as it happens to 
be one that runs east and west, it stuck. On all streets 
and avenues running north and south the names of in- 
dividuals formerly given them have been thrown into 
the scrap heap and numbers substituted — which was 
the right thing to do as the city grew. 

It was soon after the Tuttle tract had been sold out 
that Boggs & Hill platted a large tract in the same vi- 
cinity which they called Omaha View. They also platted 
other outside properties and did an extensive business 
for a number of years. Neither one is now living. The 
valuable property at the southwest corner of Douglas 
and Fifteenth, occupied by Browning, King & Co., be- 
longs to the Hill estate. The ground was formerly 
occupied by a livery stable belonging to Milo Hunt. 
George H. Boggs and Lew Hill were both in the railway 
mail service and lost their positions. It is said that 
Mrs. Boggs was much concerned for fear her husband 
would not be able to make a living after this catastrophe. 
Witliout any experience as real estate dealers the two 
formed a partnership and their first venture was with 
a small tract which they converted into small building 
lots and called it Boggs & Hill's first addition. 

When A. J. Hanscom platted Hanscom Place after 
giving the city forty acres for a park and which, with 



30 Omaha and Omaha Men 

about twenty acres donated by his neighbor, James G. 
Megeath, is now Hanscom Park and a famous beauty 
spot, he found slow sale for lots and in order to attract 
attention to it he offered a lot as a gift to any one who 
would build on it and make it his home. He told me 
that he took George W. Hall, then in the employ of the 
Union Pacific company, out one day and told him he 
could select any lot in the addition with the exception 
of corner lots, and receive a deed for it free, if he would 
build on it. Mr. Hall was delighted with the proposi- 
tion and expressed himself in the most enthusiastic 
manner. Then he was silent for a time as the two passed 
along from one block to another and finally said: "Mr. 
Hanscom; this is a long way from town. Don't you 
think you could give me a couple of lots if I would build 
out here?" Then the two returned to town. Mr. 
Hall several years afterward bought the General Dandy 
residence on Park avenue for $13,000. 

It was in the 80's that Dundee Place was platted by 
a party of men who came here from Kansas City. They 
bought a large tract of J. N. H. Patrick and built a con- 
siderable number of houses which they offered for sale 
with the lots on easy terms. It had then no street car 
connection and the demand for the property was not 
active. The slump in real estate came on about 1890 
and for a number of years many of the houses built by 
the owners of Dundee Place were vacant and were, as 
the poet says, the home of bats and owls. When street 
car facilities were extended to the property the sales 
became quite brisk, trees were planted on the streets, 
and it is now a choice residence district. 

With a desire to add to the industries of Omaha, 
S. H. H. Clark, Frank Murphy, W. G. Shriver, John B. 



Some Additions To Omaha 31 

Evans, E. A. Bird, Dr. J. R. Conkling and John T. Bell 
put in about $10,000 in the erection of a vegetable can- 
nery on the West Side addition. The owners of the 
addition donated several lots for that purpose. The 
cannery was sold to Mr. Haarmann, as I recollect it, 
who converted it into a vinegar factory. 

As an illustration of the money made in real estate 
in Omaha and vicinity may be given the experience of 
William F. Snyder and his wife. Snyder married a woman 
who had saved up $1,000 as a domestic. They used this 
money in buying of John A. Horbach a tract of 110 
acres which lies on both sides of Leavenworth as now 
extended. The price was $5,500. That left them 
$4,500 in debt. E. L. Stone and I bought 30 acres of 
them for exactly that amount. They gave six acres 
to the city for park purposes and made other sales. The 
remaining portion of 15 acres was sold recently for $37,500 
so that the total sales will probably not fall short of 
$70,000 for an original investment of $1,000 — the savings 
of a prudent and industrious woman. She died some 
time ago but Mr. Snyder and several of their children 
are living. 

C. F. Harrison, of the firm of Harrison & Morton, 
tells this story of a transaction that illustrates the growth 
of business property values since 1910: "In May, 1900, 
I sold to Elizabeth Dufrene a piece of Farnam street 
property, viz: 66 feet on the north side of Farnam near 
18th street for $14,000, 66 feet on the south side at the 
corner of 19th street for $21,000, 86^ ^eet on the south 
side between 19th and 20th for $12,000, 33 feet on the 
north side near 20th for $6,000. February, 1916, we 
sold for Mrs. Dufrene's daughter, Elizabeth Dufrene 
Hill, the 86J4 feet which was bought for $12,000 for 



32 Omaha and Omaha Men 

$100,000 net cash. Dr. Gifford, the buyer, erected the 
new Sanford Hotel on it and regarded he got a bargain. 
The other properties are still owned by Mrs. Dufrene's 
daughter and have advanced in value in about the same 
proportion. The advance in the 16 years was 773 per 
cent or 42 3^ per cent a year. And a woman did it." 

THE OMAHA BAR IN 1870 

The following named constituted the Omaha bar 
in 1870: G. W. and J. C. Ambrose, Chas. A. Baldwin, 
John P. Bartlett, F. A. Beals, Chas. H. Brown, C. S. 
Chase, Thos. J. O'Connor, John C. Cowin, John DeLaney, 
George W. Doane, D. R. Burns, V. A. Elliott, Experience 
Estabrook, Wm. Gaslin, Jr., L. B. Gibson, George I. 
Gilbert, Patrick O. Hawes, George M. O'Brien, James 
Haxby, A. W. Henry, J. E. Kelly, B. E. B. Kennedy, 
L. F. Magin, A. M. Mothershead, James F. Morton, 
James Neville, A. J. Poppleton, George E. Pritchett, 
C. W. Page, W. L. Peabody, John I. Redick, T. W. T. 
Richards, James W. Savage, J. S. Spann, Silas A. Strick- 
land, Albert Swartzlander, John M. Thurston, John L. 
Webster, James M. Woolworth, Chas. H. Manderson, 
John D. Howe, W. J. Connell. 

G. W. Ambrose, George W. Doane, James Neville, 
James W. Savage and E. Wakeley became judges of this 
district and Wm. Gaslin a judge in a western district. 
Judge Wakeley came to Nebraska Territory a United 
States Judge appointed by Franklin Pierce. W. L. 
Peabody was a County Judge, John D. Howe was at- 
torney for a railroad company with headquarters in 
Minneapolis, I think; John M. Thurston succeeded A. 
J. Poppleton as Chief Counsel of the Union Pacific 
Company and was also a United States Senator, Ex- 
perience Estabrook came to the Territory as United 



The Omaha Bar In 1870 33 

States District Attorney, Silas Strickland and James 
Neville each served a term as United States District 
Attorney, J. C. Ambrose developed into a newspaper 
man as a result of his serving the Herald and also the Bee 
as a correspondent in the Legislature at Lincoln and 
for many years was connected with the Chicago Times. 
Silas A. Strickland was president of the Constitutional 
Convention of 1871, and John L. Webster presided over 
that in 1875. 

There are now in excess of 450 attorneys of record 
in Omaha. 

MANY ACHIEVE DISTINCTION 

In many lines Omaha men have become prominent. 
This city supplied six United States Senators — John M. 
Thayer, Phineas W. Hitchcock, Gen. Chas. F. Mander- 
son, John M. Thurston, Joseph Millard and Gilbert 
M. Hitchcock (now serving his second term). In the 
House of Representatives John Taft, David Mercer,^ 
W. J. Council, John A. McShane, Gilbert M. Hitchcock, 
John L. Kennedy and C. O. Lobeck (now serving his 
third term) have been enrolled as members. John M. 
Thayer, James E. Boyd and Lorenzo Crounse have 
been Governors of Nebraska and the latter was United 
States Collector of Customs here. J. W. Paddock, 
James W. Savage and Joseph Millard have served as 
Commissioners to represent the government as Inspec- 
tors of Government-aided Railroads. Lewis A. Groff was 
appointed Assistant Attorney in the Land Department 
at Washington, George D. Micklejohn was Assistant 
Secretary of War. The names of Champion S. Chase, 
John M. Thayer, James E. Boyd, Alvin Saunders, Phineas 



34 Omaha and Omaha Men 

W. Hitchcock, John L. Webster, Judge Elmer S. Dundy, 
Thomas B. Cuming, Thomas L. Kimball, and John 
M. Thurston have been bestowed on counties in this state. 
To the list of United States Senators there should also 
be added the name of Alvin Saunders. 

John C. Cowin was special Counsel for the govern- 
ment in closing up its account with the Union Pacific 
railroad company which had been pending for many 
years. As a result of this service the government 
received 68 million dollars. T. H. Tibbies was the nominee 
of a political party for the vice presidency of our nation; 
Richard Berlin was a member of the Missouri River Com- 
mission ; Richard L. Metcalfe Civil Governor of the Panama 
Canal Zone; Constantine J. Smythe was Attorney Gen- 
eral of Nebraska and, after serving as assistant United 
States attorney in important litigation at San Francisco 
and Portland, was recently appointed Chief Justice 
of the United States Court of Appeals of the District 
of Columbia; Thomas W. Blackburn is a member of a 
board consisting of ten leading insurance men appointed 
by Secretary of the Treasury McAdoo to devise a system 
of military life insurance and Joseph W. Woodrough 
has been appointed United States Judge for this district. 



I first knew Samuel Rees when he was superintendent 
of the Republican job printing department. He is 
now, with his son Samuel Jr., the owner of one of the most 
complete printing establishments in the state — the re- 
sult of years of steady attention to business. In addition 
to the job printing, a bookbinding and lithographing 
business is also carried on and employment is given to 
about 100 persons. Quite a gap between this and the fore- 
manship of a job office with a force of half a dozen men. 



Organized Real Estate Dealers 35 



ORGANIZED REAL ESTATE DEALERS 

No class of men in a community are more im'portant 
in its up-building than are the dealers in real estate. 
They are always enterprising and alert to everything 
calculated to be of public benefit. In an early day 
they called themselves land agents and, of course, their 
transactions related chiefly to farm lands. In the first 
History of Omaha, published by James M. Woolworth 
who, at the date of his death, was one of the most famous 
lawyers in Nebraska, he published his own advertise- 
ment as a land agent. 

The late Byron Reed was one of the first men to en- 
gage in the real estate business here. His office was 
in a frame one-story building on the west side of Four- 
teenth between Farnam and Douglas with some trees 
growing in front of it. A. J. Poppleton told me that 
the only man he ever knew who never made a mistake 
was Byron Reed. He left a large fortune to his wife 
and son, A. L. Reed, and his daughter who became the 
wife of Frank Johnson, and every dollar of that fortune 
was honestly acquired and as the result of his confidence 
in the future of the city he had seen grow from a village. 

George P. Bemis, twice Mayor of Omaha, came here 
many years ago as the representative of his uncle, George 
Francis Train, who had extensive real estate interests 
here. He built up a very successful business for himself 
as a real estate dealer and was held in high esteem by the 
citizens of Omaha. 

The first organization of real estate men in Omaha 
was made in 1886 with the following membership: Omaha 
Real Estate & Trust Co.; Marshal & Lobeck; Hartman 



36 Omaha and Omaha Men 

^- • ■ — ■ 

& Gibson; Bell & McCandlish; Mead & Jameson; Greg- 
ory & Hadley; W. G. Shriver; M. A. Upton & Co.; Clark 
& French; John B. Evans & Co.; Ballou Bros.; George N. 
Hicks and George P. Bemis. Alvin Saunders, of the 
Omaha Real Estate & Trust Co., was elected president; 
John T. Bell, vice president; David Jameson, secretary; 
J. W. Marshall, treasurer and J. S. Gibson, W. G. 
Shriver and G. B. Gregory, executive committee. 

To this date a like organization is maintained in Omaha 
and it has been of great benefit to the city as it has 
taken an interest in all public matters and by reason of 
its numbers as to membership and of the high standing 
of its members it has wielded an influence of power. 
The membership at present is 75 and the officers of the 
association — now called the Omaha Real Estate Board — 
are as follows: E. M. Slater, president; George D. Tunni- 
cliff, vice president; George G. Wallace, secretary and 
Hugh E. Wallace, treasurer. 

John L. McCague, president of the McCague In- 
vestment Company, and who built the McCague bank 
building; W. G. Shriver, C. C. George, A. P. Tukey, 
George H. Payne, J. H. Dumont and George G. Wallace 
have long been engaged in handling real estate deals 
in Omaha. Harry Reed and his cousin, A. L. Reed, 
were brought up in the business in the ofhce of the father 
of the latter — Byron Reed. 

Clifton E. Mayne cut a wide swath here as a real 
estate dealer during the rush period in that line in the 
80*s. Many were the additions and subdivisions he put 
on the market and sold with astonishing speed. He 
always drove good horses and one day he was seen driv- 
ing to his home out on Leavenworth with a fine span of 
blacks tied behind his buggy. An acquaintance meeting 



Tall Oaks From Little Acorns 37 



him complimented him on the appearance of the span 
and suggested that they must have cost him quite a sum. 
'*It was this way," explained Mayne. "A man came 
into the office and said he had seen a piece of property 
I owned and that he would buy it if I would take a span 
of horses in part payment. I went and looked at the 
horses. He said his price was $800 so I just tacked on 
that amount to the selling price of the property and 
closed the deal." 

"TALL OAKS FROM LITTLE ACORNS'' 

The Telephone Company which now, with its con- 
nections, carries messages to the uttermost parts of the 
country, is an illustration of what may be built up from 
small beginnings. It was in 1879 that L. H. Korty and 
J. J. Dickey secured a right to install a telephone service 
in Omaha. Mr. Dickey was then the superintendent 
of the Union Pacific company's telegraph service and 
Mr. Korty was his assistant. The former died a number 
of years ago but the latter is still a resident of this city 
and one of the most highly esteemed citizens. 

The first office of the company was at the northwest 
corner of Farnam and Fifteenth streets, up stairs, next in 
the Ramge block, upstairs, and then at its present location 
in the J. L. Kennedy building at Douglas and Nineteenth. 
The company is having erected a building to be 18 stories 
high at the northwest corner of Douglas and Nineteenth 
on a property 132 feet square formerly occupied by the 
residence of Dr. George Tilden. It is expected the struc- 
ture will be completed by January 1st, 1919. The 
company's first list of subscribers was 127 in number; 
its present list is 43,940. Following is a list of the 
officers of the company — now a part of the great organ- 
ization known as the Telephone and Telegraph Company: 



38 Omaha and Omaha Men 

C. E. Yost, president; W. B. T. Belt, vice president 
and general manager; C. W. Lyman, 2nd vice president; 
E. M. Morsman, Sr., 3rd vice presdent; J. W. Christie, 
secretary and treasurer; W. A. Pixley, general auditor; 
E. M. Morsman, Jr., general counsel ; J. R. McDonald, 
assistant secretary and assistant treasurer; A. S. Rogers, 
chief engineer; Guy H. Pratt, general commercial super- 
intendent; A. A. Lowman, general superintendent of 
plant; A. S. Kelly, general superintendent of traffic; Chas. 
E. Hall, tax commissioner; Frank A. May, commercial 
superintendent; E. I. Hannah, superintendent of plant; 
J. R. Carter, superintendent of traffic; P. H. Patton, 
engineer; A. F. McAdams, district commercial manager; 
J. M. Bohan, district plant chief; C. F. Lambert, 
district traffic chief. 

In one of its recent annual reports the Telephone and 
Telegraph Company it included a fine picture of half a 
dozen men seated at a table in New York City the oc- 
casion being the sending of a telephone message from the 
New York office of that company direct to San Francisco. 
In this group were Graham Bell, inventor of the Bell 
telephone; Theodore N. Vail, president of the company 
and Casper E. Yost, president of the Nebraska Telephone 
Company. I received a copy of that report away out in 
Oregon and I was pleased to note that time had dealt 
very gently with Mr. Yost whom I had known for several 
decades but had not seen for a number of years, 

Theodore N. Vail, president of the Telephone and 
Telegraph Company, formerly lived in Omaha and was 
a mail clerk running out on the Union Pacific to North 
Platte, and the inventor of the transmitter used in 
the early history of telephones was an Omaha attorney 
of the name of Blake. 



Incident of Gov. Saunders' Boyhood 39 

IN GOV. SAUNDERS' BOYHOOD 

Alvin Saunders was appointed Territorial Governor 
of Nebraska in 1861 by President Lincoln and, until his 
death, was a prominent citizen of Omaha. He served 
the state as Senator and was always active in everything 
calculated to benefit his fellow men. To a newspaper 
reporter he once told this story: His mother, a widow, 
moved from Kentucky to Illinois when the future Govern- 
or and Senator was a small boy. The family was des- 
perately poor and in order to help with family expenses 
he got a basket of cakes from the town baker, with the 
understanding that he was to sell them, on " Muster Day" 
for a dollar of which half was to go to the baker. The boy 
was bashful and all day he wandered about in the crowd 
with his basket covered and when evening came he still 
had its contents untouched. As he was making his way 
homeward, discouraged, with a group of boys who 
knew what was in that basket following him. Col. Henry, 
the big man of the occasion rode up and asked him what 
he had in the basket and when he was told all about it and 
how the cakes had been bought of the baker who was to 
receive half of the proposed selling price of a dollar the 
Colonel told him to give the boys the cakes and to tell 
the baker that Col. Henry would pay him the dollar at 
the shop. 

In a flash the boys had emptied the basket and, 
with tears in his eyes, the lad made his way to the baker 
to report. He was gratified to find that the credit of 
Col. Henry was good for a dollar and the next day he 
went around and was given a half dollar by the baker. 
Years afterwards, when this barefooted Kentucky boy had 
become a man, he was a member of the Legislature in 



40 Omaha and Omaha Men 

Iowa. A name was being sought for a new county in 
that state and he suggested that of Henry and told the 
story here related, and Henry county it has been from that 
day. 

Gov. Saunders said that he had the remarkable ex- 
perience in having lived in two territories and one state 
and all the time in the same house, viz: in Iowa when it 
was a part of the Territory of Wisconsin, in Iowa when 
it was itself a Territory and in Iowa after it became a state. 

A FOREIGN APPOINTMENT 

Walking about town a few evenings ago with Lewis 
Reed he called attention to the change in Eighteenth 
street between Farnam and Douglas where Judge John 
R. Porter, T. W. T. Richards and other old timers for- 
merly lived, on the west side of the street on a consid- 
erable elevation, which elevation together with the homes 
then located upon it has disappeared. T. W. T. Richards 
was a Virginian and always wore boots with extremely 
high heels. During the Civil War he served in Col. 
John S. Mosby's Confederate Cavalry. 

Speaking of Richards reminds me of a visit I once 
had with Col. Mosby of three days and nights as we 
journeyed eastward from San Francisco many years 
after that war. He was an unusually interesting man 
and with other stories told this: His home was at Abing- 
ton, Virginia, a few miles from Washington, and at the 
close of hostilities he found it hard sledding to earn a 
living for himself and family. In addition he was annoyed 
by Union soldiers stationed in his town. His wife 
became alarmed for his safety and one day during his 
absence from home she took their little son and went 
to Washington to see President Johnson. 



A Foreign Appointment 41 

With difficulty she reached the President. He and 
her father, a former governor of Kentucky, were personal 
friends in happier days and when she was married at her 
home in Kentucky he was one of the guests. Mrs. 
Mosby took the little boy along on account of his having 
been named after her father. President Johnson received 
her coldly, refused her request for some sort of a paper 
that would protect her husband and incidentally added 
that her husband deserved hanging. Going down the 
steps of the White House after this interview, with the 
tears streaming down her cheeks, she met an army 
officer who asked if he could be of any service to her. 
Mrs. Mosby told of her mission and the officer took her 
to General Grant's headquarters and told her to tell 
her story to the General. This she did and the head of 
the army wrote a paper which he handed her saying: 
"Present this to Col. Mosby with my compliments." 
Then he picked up the child and kissed him. The 
President had paid no attention to the boy who was 
named in honor of his old friend — the governor of Ken- 
tucky. With that paper in his possession Col. Mosby 
had no further trouble with Union soldiers. 

Out of appreciation for the kindness shown him 
Col. Mosby said he stumped Virginia for Grant when 
nominated for President and that Grant sent him word 
that he would be pleased to be of aid to him at any time. 
Finally, as a result of his being ostracised by his friends 
and neighbors by reason of his service in Grant's behalf, 
he found himself unable to support his family and so 
called on the President who appointed him Minister to 
Shanghai and there he remained until the end of Grant's 
second term. On Grant's request President Hayes 
retained him at Shanghai and when he was succeeded 



42 Omaha and Omaha Men 

by Garfield, Grant asked President Stanford of the South- 
ern Pacific to give Mosby a place in the law department 
of his company at San Francisco which request was 
complied with. 

Col. Mosby had just had some photographs of him- 
self taken on the eve of this eastern journey and he gave 
me one, with his autograph. After keeping it for a num- 
ber of years I sent it to Tom Richards who was then 
living in Los Angeles and received in response a letter 
that was pleasing reading. 

THE PUBLIC LIBRARY 

For more than 40 years Omaha has had a public 
library and it is an interesting fact that Lewis S. Reed 
was a member of the board for 38 yeat-s and its president 
for 18 years. It is now housed in one of the best buildings 
of its character in the country. The site, on Harney, 
at the intersection of Nineteenth, was donated by the 
late Byron Reed and he left, in his will, a bequest to the 
library of a collection of coins, newspaper files, books 
on a vast variety of subjects, some of them the work 
of the pen in the hands of monks centuries ago; autograph 
letters from a host of distinguished men, etc. 

It is doubtful if the equal of this coin collection can 
be found in the United States. It includes specimens 
from every nation in the world that has, or ever had, 
a currency. Mr. Reed placed a value of $50,000 on it 
but there can be no doubt that this was an undervaluation 
for the reason that many of the coins now command a 
high premium. They are all arranged to represent 
the various countries from which they came. In the 
Jewish collection is a coin marked "widow's mite" — 



The Public Library 43 



supposed to be the denomination of coin which the widow 
cast into the treasury in the time of Christ and of which 
He spoke as "the greatest of all for she hath cast in her 
entire living." Another is a coin said to be of the value 
of those of which Judas received thirty pieces for a be- 
trayal of the Saviour. 

For a number of years I was a member of the Board 
of Directors, with Judge J. W. Savage, Lewis S. Reed, 
William W. Wallace and Miss Elizabeth Poppleton, 
and the subject of having a museum installed in connec- 
tion with the library was one of frequent discussion. A 
museum is now installed on the third floor of the building 
and is a source of interest and instruction of much im- 
portance. It was commenced in 1898 with the donation 
of a number of paintings that had been on exhibition 
at the famous exposition held in Omaha that year and 
which set the pace for the world in being the first that 
did not come out in debt. As time passed other donations 
have been received until there is no longer space to dis- 
play all of them. 

For some time after the present building was com- 
pleted Miss Jessie Allan was librarian and had as her 
assistants Miss Blanche Allan and Miss Margaret O'Brien, 
daughter of General G. M. O'Brien. The Misses Allan 
were the daughters of James T. Allan who was the pro- 
prietor of the Herndon House when George Francis 
Train, according to tradition, gave a darkey a dollar to 
stand with his back against a broken window pane in 
the dinihg room to keep the wind off while Train ate his 
dinner. It now requires more than three persons at the 
library to attend to the demands of the public, the 
present list of those thus engaged being as follows : 



44 Omaha and Omaha Men 



Misses Edith Tobitt, from the Pratt Institute, of 
Brooklyn, N. Y., elected Librarian April, 1898; Blanche 
Hammond, Bertha Baumer, Kate Swartzlander, Lila 
Bowen, Mary T. Little, Madeline Hillis, Mary Wood- 
bridge, Bess J. Anderson, Frances Sawyer, Edna J. Wolff, 
Ruth Howard, Lois Moore, Rena Walker, Edith McNett, 
Stella Conley, Katherine Abbott, Florence Osborne, 
Helen Bennett and Clara Abernathy. 

The total number of books belonging to the library 
is 123,891 of which there are nearly 100,000 in the main 
library and the others are distributed among the branch 
libraries, deposit stations, and class room libraries. The 
annexation of South Omaha added to this city a library 
building that cost $50,000 and also 10,000 volumes. The 
main library building on Harney street cost $100,000. 

The following named are the Board of Directors: 
Mayor James C. Dahlman, C. N. Dietz, president; L. J. 
TePoel, vice president; Lucien Stephens, secretary; Dr. 
J. E. Summers, Dr. T. J. Dwyer and Dr. A. N. Hagan. 

C. J. Samuelson is the engineer and the following 
named are janitors: James I. Byrne, Hans Larsen and 
Louis Kopecky. There are so many books to re-bind 
that a bindery is located in the basement of the building. 
These constitute the force in that department: Edward 
Droste, Carl Nielsen, D. O. Stammers, Miss Viola Phelps 
and Miss Eva Mulvahill. 

Excellent order is maintained in the Omaha library 
and the employees are efficient and courteous in the 
performance of their duties. The support of the insti- 
tution comes from an appropriation of $45,000 annually 
by the city. 



Long in the Business 45 

LONG IN THE BUSINESS 

Joseph Millard, Luther Drake and Milton Barlow 
are the oldest, in point of service, in the banking business 
in Omaha. Mr. Millard was, with his brother Ezra, 
connected in the 50's with the bank of Barrows, Millard 
& Co., whose place of business was in a two story build- 
ing at the northeast corner of Farnam and Twelfth, 
the site, subsequently, of the United States National 
Bank conducted by S. S. Caldwell and Chas. W. Ham- 
ilton. Mr. Drake was early in the 70's assistant cashier 
of the State Bank, of which Alvin Saunders was pres- 
ident and Ben Wood cashier, the bank being located 
on the north side of Farnam between Thirteenth and 
Fourteenth. Mr. Millard has long been president of 
the Omaha National Bank, Mr. Barlow is president of 
the United States National Bank and Mr. Drake is 
president of the Merchants National. 

At its organization, and for many years, Ezra Millard 
was president of the Omaha National and even before 
it became a national bank. In 1885 he organized the 
Commercial National which began business at the south- 
east corner of Thirteenth and Douglas. A few years 
later he secured the corner lot at Farnam and Sixteenth 
on which the Redick Opera House stood and there the 
fine building of the Commercial National was erected. 
Mr. Millard was president, A. P. Hopkins, who had 
been president of the First National of Fremont, was 
cashier and Alfred Millard assistant cashier. Both 
Ezra Millard and Joseph Millard were Mayors of Omaha. 
Ezra Millard died a number of years ago but will long 
be remembered here on account of his enterprise, his 
business ability, his public spirit, his affection for Omaha 
and confidence in its future and for his kind heart. 



46 Omaha and Omaha Men 

Augustus, Herman, Charles and Luther Kountze 
came from Pennsylvania in the 50's to begin a banking 
business in Omaha. From the start Augustus and Her- 
man Kountze were important factors in the building 
up of this city. They also showed their confidence in 
Omaha's future by making large investments in real 
estate here. Augustus became the head of a bank in 
New York City and Charles of a bank in Denver. Until 
his death, a few years ago, Herman Kountze was at the 
head of the First National Bank of Omaha, of which 
his brother-in-law, Fred H. Davis, is now the president. 
Herman Kountze was a benevolent man but did his 
deeds of kindness in a quiet way. 

Henry W. Yates, who died a few years ago, was also 
a pioneer banking man of Omaha. He with John S. 
Collins, A. E, Touzalin and others founded the Nebraska 
National. He had previously been cashier of the First 
National. Mr. Touzalin was an importaat official in 
the B. & M. railroad company. A son of Mr. Yates, 
also Henry W., is now cashier of the Nebraska National. 
When plans were being made for the erection of the bank 
building, northwest corner of Farnam and Twelfth, 
the lot adjoining on the west was owned by a Mr. Sol- 
omon who had a glassware store on the property. The 
bank people tried to buy the lot but Mr. Solomon's idea 
of its value struck them as being far in excess of its real 
value and they were thus unable to put up as imposing a 
building in respect to frontage as they desired. 

For many years there was quite a stream north of 
town and so deep that I have seen persons baptized in 
it. It ran parallel with Cuming street and just north 
of it. It has long been in use as one of the main sewers 
for that part of the city and covered up. 



In the Wholesale Grocery Line 47 



IN THE WHOLESALE GROCERY LINE 

In 1870 Steele & Johnson were the only wholesale 
grocers in this city. Their sales for that year footed up 
a million dollars and it was deemed a big business. The 
sales of the Paxton & Gallagher Co. (Wm. A. Paxton 
and Ben Gallagher) for last year were in excess of ten 
millions. They began business in a two story building 
at the southeast corner of Farnam and Fifteenth that 
had been built for a livery stable. This was in 1879. 
In 1882 the company secured a site near the Union Pa- 
cific station on Tenth street and have remained there ever 
since, gradually extending until now they have nearly 
half a million invested in ground and buildings. The 
company employs 477 people and does business in ten 
states, with branch houses in Auburn, Hastings and 
Crawford, Nebraska; Cheyenne, Wyoming, and Dead- 
wood, South Dakota. 

Charles H. Pickens, president of the company, since 
the death of Mr. Gallagher, became connected with the 
house when the business was carried on at Farnam and 
Fifteenth. In a talk with him recently he told this story: 
"Charlie Woodman, Jim Haynes and I, were studying 
shorthand together when we were lads and when we got 
stuck we used to call on you to help us out as you were 
about the only one in Omaha who wrote shorthand at 
that time. It was my knowledge of shorthand that got 
me a place with Paxton & Gallagher. I began with a 
modest salary, of course. Mr. Gibbon was then the man- 
ager and it was not long until I was doing all sorts of 
stunts and was kept at it frequently until late at night. 

"After a while I found myself so run down that I 
went to see a doctor and he told me that I would have 



48 Omaha and Omaha Men 

to get out doors more or I would break down entirely. 
I asked Mr. Gallagher if he couldn't give me a job of 
driving a delivery w^igon. He wanted to know just 
what I had been doing and I told him all about it. He 
was surprised to find that I was working at night. He 
asked me as to my salary and when I told him he said he 
would tell Mr. Gibbon to give me an increase dating 
back to January 1st, though this was the 1st of May, 
and he also told me to pack a grip and make a trip to 
California. I was made general manager in 1895 and 
president of the company on the death of Mr. Paxton." 

OLD FAMILIES STILL REPRESENTED 

There are still in Omaha sons of many of the pioneer 
business men of Omaha. Judge Arthur Wakeley is a 
son of Judge Eleazer Wakeley; Judge William Redick, 
of Judge John L Redick as are also O. C. Redick, 
George M Redick and Elmer S. Redick; Charles W., 
Frank T. and Fred P. Hamilton are the sons of Charles 
W. Hamilton; Randall K. Brown is the son of James J. 
Brown; S. S. Caldwell, of S. S. Caldwell; A. L. Reed, 
son of Byron Reed; Ed. B. Williams of L. B. Williams; 
Frank Johnson, son of S. R. Johnson; Frank J. Burkley 
and Harry V. Burkley, sons of Vincent Burkley; Ezra 
Millard, son of Ezra Millard. 

G. W. Megeath, son of James G. Megeath; G. S. 
Rogers, of Samuel E. Rogers; James C. Ish, of Dr. J. 
K. Ish; Elmer J. Neville, son of Judge James Neville; 
Augustus, Charles, Herman and Luther Kountze are the 
sons of Herman Kountze (named after their father and 
his three brothers); Fred H. Davis, son of Thornas Davis; 
Herbert Rogers, son of Milton Rogers; Henry W. Yates, 



Old Families Still Represented 49 

son of Henry W. Yates; Robert Patrick, son of J. N. H. 
Patrick; Victor Rosewater, son of Edward Rosewater; 
Ex-Judge Howard Kennedy, son of Howard Kennedy; 
Fred Creigh, son of Thomas Creigh; Fred W. Lake, 
son of Judge George B. Lake; Charles S. Huntington, 
son of L. C. Huntington; Arthur P. Karbach, son of 
Charles Karbach; Moses O'Brien, son of Geo. M. O'Brien. 

Thomas R. Kimball, son of T. L. Kimball, long at 
the head of the passenger department of the Union Pacific 
railroad company; John N. and Joseph Frenzer, sons of 
Peter Frenzer whose wagon-making shop occupied the 
present site of the Frenzer block; Fred B. and Jesse Lowe, 
sons of Jesse Lowe, Omaha's first Mayor; Edward P. 
Peck, son of Dr. Peck, who came to Omaha in the 50's; 
William Marsh, son of Capt. W. W. Marsh; Joseph B. 
Redfield, son of Joseph Redfield; Lucien Stephens, son 
of William Stephens; Charles L. Deuel, son of Harry 
Deuel, who was for many years a railroad ticket agent 
and who was something of a philosopher. He used to 
say: "There are a good many holes in a skimmer." 
Julius Festner, son of F. C. Festner; George T. Morton, 
son of Cyrus Morton; Charles H. Gratton, son of George 
W. Gratton; Louis Grebe, son of Henry Grebe. 



The late M. R. Risdon served in the Union army 
in the Civil war and a part of that service was in Ander- 
sonville prison. He was always an ardent republican 
and one day walking down Farnam street he saw a crowd 
collected at the intersection of Fifteenth. In this crowd 
was a man denouncing President Grant. Risdon pressed 
his way in, knocked the man down, and walked off con- 
scious of doing his duty as he saw it. 



50 Omaha and Omaha Men 

NEWSPAPERS AND NEWSPAPER MEN 

Nebraska has always been overwhelmingly republican 
as to politics and it was a marvel of journalism that 
Dr. Miller and Lyman Richardson were able to publish 
for 23 years a democratic newspaper in Omaha. That 
Dr. Miller was an unusally strong writer and that his 
associate was a business man of the first order does not 
seem to entirely account for that success. The subscrip- 
tion price of the paper was ''Ten Dollars, Strictly in 
advance, Clergymen half price," and in the early history 
of the paper ten dollars was a lot of money in this then 
small town and sparsely-settled country. The old 
Herald will always fill a warm place in my recollections. 
The first money I ever received for newspaper work was 
paid me by the Herald in 1870. It lacked just a quarter 
of being $36 and was for a report of a murder trial in 
Fremont. Succeeding that I did much work for the 
Herald. It would be impossible to estimate the value 
of the service rendered this city and state by Dr. Miller 
and Lyman Richardson with the Herald. Speaking of 
this recently Lewis Reed told me that the fact of the 
plains country being specially adapted to the winter- 
grazing of stock was first advertised by Dr. Miller by 
reason of Edward Creighton finding fat and hearty, 
one spring, a lot of cattle that had broken away from his 
camp out on the plains the winter before and which he 
had supposed perished. Within a few years the Creigh- 
tons and McShanes had 60,000 head of cattle on the 
Wyoming ranges and for many years the stock business 
of that region was of enormous extent. Mr. Reed 
also said that the knowledge that winter wheat could 
be successfully raised in Nebraska was first spread abroad 
through the Omaha Herald. 



Newspapers and Newspaper Men 51 

Edward Rosewater was a member of the Legislature 
of Nebraska in 1871 and his course there did not suit 
the Omaha Republican people which fact they made 
generally known. On returning home Rosewater bought 
a little theatrical sheet and in June of that year began 
the publication of the Bee. It has been said that one 
object he had in view was to repel attacks made upon 
him by the Republican. Possibly that was not the 
case but the fact remains that he at once began methods 
that must have made the Republican owners quite un- 
comfortable at times. Certain it is the Republican 
died and the Bee still lives — one of the leading news- 
papers of the west and housed in a magnificent building 
of granite. 

Mr. Rosewater did his writing with soft pencils 
only a few inches long. He had been a telegraph opera- 
tor and was a fast writer as well as a pungent writer. 
In the early period of the Bee's history it was his custom 
to collect newspaper clippings for several departments 
he ran in his Saturday issues. On one occasion he left 
W. E. Annin, an associate editor, in charge of the paper 
and when he returned on Monday and was looking 
over the Saturday paper he was all stirred up on account 
of the character of the clippings Annin had used in these 
departments. He said they were rubbish and trash but 
Annin explained that every last one of them had been 
taken from the paper collar box in which they had been 
stored by Mr. Rosewater. 

James B. Haynes, for several years managing editor 
of the Bee, says that he was asked to look up short stories 
to run in the paper. Nothing in this line clipped by the 
managing editor quite suited Mr. Rosewater and he 
said he would attend to that matter himself. He found 



52 Omaha and Omaha Men 

what struck him as being the right sort, read the opening 
paragraph, and sent it in to the composing room. It 
proved to be quite interesting and it also proved to be 
one which wound up with an advertisement of Warner's 
Safe Cure — in which style of advertising Warner was 
an expert. 

Upon the death of Edward Rosewater the manage- 
ment of the Bee fell to his sons, Victor and Charles, and 
it is still a newspaper of wide circulation and great in- 
fluence. The building covers a site 132 feet square 
and at the time of its erection there was no other news- 
paper establishment in our land which covered so great 
an area. 

For many years the Republican was the leading re- 
publican daily of the Territory and State. It had many 
editors coming and going in succession and it was said 
that the purpose of its proprietors was to eventually 
find a man who would "down Miller" of the Herald, 
but for twenty-three years Dr. Miller continued to edit 
the Herald, writing copy which was the terror of printers. 
The Republican was an active force in Omaha's early 
struggles to secure the * 'initial point" of the Union Pacific 
railroad for there was much talk of having the bridge 
built at Child's mills, several miles south of Omaha. 



When Gilbert M. Hitchcock and his associates — Frank 
Burkley, W. F. Gurley, W. V. Rooker and Alfred Millard— 
founded the Omaha Evening World they took the pre- 
caution of making a complete canvas of the city for 
subscriptions. With the exception of Mr. Rooker and 
Mr. Gurley the others were all born here and had a host 
of friends interested in their success. Mr. Hitchcock 
is the only one of the group that it now connected with 



Newspapers and Newspaper Men 53 

the paper. Mr. Burkley went into the job printing 
business on his own account and has made a great suc- 
cess in that line; Mr. Millard went into his father's bank; 
Mr. Gurley into the practice of law and Mr. Rooker 
went back to his old home city, Indianapolis, and has 
been a lawyer for many years. He was a thorough 
newspaperman but he remained here only a few years. 

One of Mr. Hitchcock's early appearances as a public 
speaker was when he debated with Phoebe Couzzens 
on woman suffrage at Boyd's Opera House at the corner 
of Farnam and Fifteenth. The building was packed to 
the doors. During Miss Couzzens' presentation of her 
side of the proposition Mr. Hitchcock sat quietly listen- 
ing. He had but fairly begun his reply when Miss 
Couzzens jumped up with an interruption which was 
courteously listened to by her opponent. Frequent 
interruptions of the same sort followed until finally she 
said, '* Indians and idiots are recognized as persons. What 
are we women?" With a polite bow Mr. Hitchcock 
responded: "Some people say you are angels." And 
Miss Couzzens made no more interruptions. 

With the purchase of the Herald Mr. Hitchcock 
secured the good will of a paper that had been published 
for a quarter of a century and was popular all over the 
state and the combination of the two papers was an 
excellent business proposition. 

F. M. McDonagh, an old time reporter on the Re- 
publican, was a character. He carried a cane with a 
crook and it is not likely that any one ever saw him 
use it as canes are usually used but he "toted it around" 
with the hook hung over his left arm. He was a genial 
soul and had a pleasing gift of verse-making. He pub- 



54 Omaha and Omaha Men 

lished a paper called the Nebraska Watchman. After 
his death Ed. F. Morearty and Alexander Pollock bought 
it. The former sold his interest to Mr. Pollock and I 
bought the paper of Mr. Pollock, changed the name to 
the Omaha Mercury and made of it a very profitable 
publication. I sold it to Victor Bender. Mr. Pollock 
was a man of ususual ability. He came here in the serv- 
ice of the United States weather bureau. His wife 
was a niefce of Col. Berdan who commanded a regiment 
of sharpshooters in the Civil War. Mr. and Mrs. Pol- 
lock's son Channing has won fame as a magazine writer 
and is especially popular among theatrical people. 

When the Evening Tribune was started by a number 
of leading republicans of Omaha who were not pleased 
with the Omaha Republican a number of newspaper 
men were brought here from the east. One of these was 
Isaac Miner whose scriptural given name soon was cut 
down to plain "Ike" and thus has he been known to 
several armies of residents of Omaha during the years 
intervening from 1870 to this date. After the Tribune 
suspended he became city editor of the Republican 
and there remained for many years. 

Of all of the men connected with the local department 
of the Herald none occupied a higher place in public es- 
teem than did Homer StuU. He studied law in the office 
of James M. Wool worth and after his admission to the 
bar A. J. Poppleton secured a place for him out in Idaho 
in the law department of the Union Pacific. 

Walt Mason, now famous for his syndicate articles 
of a humorous and philosophical character and which, 
it is said bring him a revenue of $150 a week, was in the 
employ at one time of the Omaha Republican. For 



Newspapers and Newspaper Men 55 

many years he was with the Lincoln State Journal and 
then became connected with the Emporia (Kansas) Ga- 
zette where he will doubtless remain during life. 

Fred Nye came from Fremont to Omaha and began 
the publication of the News, an evening paper, early 
in the 70's, and was in later years connected with the 
Republican and the Evening World. He went to Chicago 
and was in the employ of the News of that city for a time 
and then went on the New York Sun. He lost his life 
by being run over by an automobile in New York. S. F. 
Donnelly is another former Omaha newspaper man who 
went to New York. He was connected with the World 
and was killed by a falling wall at a fire. He came to 
Omaha from Binghamton, New York, and when he 
was on the point of leaving the old Herald he had his 
friend, Sands F. Woodbridge, of Binghamton, come to 
Omaha to take his place. For a short time Donnelly 
and H. S. Smith published an evening paper here called 
the Tribune. 

In causing Sands F. Woodbridge to come from Bing- 
hamton to Omaha to take the city editorship of the 
Omaha Herald, S. F. Donnelly rendered a public service. 
From that date, more than 30 years ago, Mr. Woodbridge 
has been an Omaha newspaper man of the highest class. 
After the change in ownership in the Herald he went 
into the employ of the World — soon to become the World- 
Herald — and there he has remained, a popular, reliable, 
painstaking, efficient member of the World-Herald 
staff. In point of continuous newspaper work he is 
excelled by only one Omaha man — Alfred Sorenson. 
Mr. Woodbridge married Miss Wilson, a niece of Mrs. 
J. N. H. Patrick. 



56 Omaha and Omaha Men 

«- — 

Richard L. Metcalfe has had a varied experience. 
Along in the 80's he became a reporter on the Bee; then 
he went to the Herald; then to the World and remained 
with that paper after its combination with the Herald 
for 17 years; then he became associate editor of William 
J. Bryan's Commoner at Lincoln; was appointed Civil 
Governor of the Panama Zone and remained two years 
in that country. Returning to Omaha about three 
years ago he bought the Weekly Nebraskan and makes 
of it an interesting publication. 

James B. Haynes began his connection with the Bee 
as a shorthand writer, taking dictation from Editor 
Rosewater. When that connection ceased he was for a 
number of years managing editor of the paper. For 
several years he represented here a newspaper syndicate 
and when Joseph Millard was elected United States 
Senator he took Mr. Haynes to Washington with him as 
private secretary which position he retained until the 
close of Senator Millard's term. He is now conducting 
an advertising and publicity business in Omaha. 

Clement Chase is still publishing his Omaha Ex- 
celsior which he began the publication of when he was a 
school boy. There is not, in all probability, another in- 
stance like that in this country where a weekly paper, 
thus started, has continued for so long a period and under 
the same ownership and management. It is to the credit 
of Mr. Chase that he has made so unique a record. His 
father was at one time attorney general of Nebraska 
and he served several terms as mayor of Omaha. Chase 
County and its county seat. Champion, were named in 
his honor. 



Newspapers and Newspaper Men 57 

S. V. G. Griswold, known as "Sandy" Griswold, 
has had a newspaper experience in this city of 30 years — 
first on the Bee and, for about 25 years on the World- 
Herald. As a "sporting editor" he has a national 
reputation and in his department of Forest, Field and 
Stream, he has also won an enviable reputation. (A 
prominent Omaha newspaper man says that Mr. Gris- 
wold's writings in this line are poems in prose.) 

On the editorial force of the World-Herald is my old 
friend Thomas H. Tibbies. During the years he has been 
engaged in newspaper work he has filled hundreds of 
thousands of columns, no doubt, on a vast number of 
subjects. He has the distinction of being the only 
Omaha man to be nominated for the vice presidency of 
our nation by a great political party. The first time I 
saw Mr. Tibbies was along in the 70's when a lot of us 
assembled in the judges' stand at the fair grounds north 
of town to report some horse races. I remember that, 
in the interludes of events, he told us some marvelous 
yarns — so marvelous, indeed, that I sent some of them 
to the Chicago Times and thus preserved them for future 
generations. I take it that with the advance of years 
there has come to this worthy gentleman a modifying, 
a curbing, of the exuberance of imagination which was 
a marked feature in his mental equipment in those days. 

For 22 years Frank A. Kennedy has been publishing 
the Western Laborer, now in its 27th volume. He is 
an old-time printer and worked on all of the papers here 
in the days of setting type by hand. Referring to the 
general custom of printers in former years to be regular 
patrons of saloons Mr. Kennedy said that when, on 
quitting work, for example, at 3 o'clock in the morning, 



58 Omaha and Omaha Men 

his associates would "quiet their nerves" by the use of 
several drinks of whiskey, he would go home and accom- 
plish the same results by drinking seven cups of coffee. 
(Come to think it over seven seems to be a good many.) 

Away back in the 70's a sign projected over the side- 
walk on the south side of Howard between Twelfth and 
Thirteenth, bearing this inscription: " F. C. Festner, 
Printer." Many years ago Mr. Festner and his son 
Julius began the publication of the Tribune, a German 
weekly, which has since been converted into a daily. 
Albert Kinder, who became connected with the business 
in 1887, is managing editor of the Tribune. The paper 
is owned by a stock company of which Val J. Peter is 
president. The building is on the site of the former 
home of the Festner family. 

Then there is John M. Tanner, who was one of the 
Evening World's early crop of reporters. He was also 
connected with the Herald. A number of years ago he 
established the Democrat at South Omaha, which paper 
he is still publishing. He has been three times a member 
of the state senate and is one of the most popular news- 
paper men in Nebraska. He is a good writer, witty and 
an all-around good man. 

Thomas J. Fitzmorris, exchange editor on the Bee, 
began his newspaper career as "cub" on the Herald. 
As he grew into manhood he developed the newspaper 
instinct to a degree that made his services of value. He 
was connected with the editorial force of the Bee and 
then with the Herald and for many years has occupied 
his present position on the Bee. 

Thomas W. Blackburn served on the Bee for a couple 
of years from 1877; then was with the Republican for 



Newspapers and Newspaper Men 59 

a time; then returned to the Bee as associate editor. 
There was an interval when he was managing editor 
of the Los Angeles Tribune (which paper is not now 
published) . Twenty-five years ago he was admitted to prac- 
tice law and that profession he has followed ever since 
with gratifying success. He was honored recently by being 
selected by Mr. McAdoo, secretary of the Treasury, 
as one of ten leading life insurance men to devise a sys- 
tem of military insurance. Mr. Blackburn has two sons 
in the navy. 

A number of years ago a bright lad "pulled proofs" 
in the Herald office. His real name was William Scott 
but the "William" was cut short to "Billy" and thus 
it has remained to this day though the former galley 
operator is now superintendent of the composing room 
of the World Herald. It is a long stride from his first 
experience in newspaper work and no better evidence 
of superior ability could be given than is here afforded. 
Frank Kennedy, of the Western Laborer, tells me that 
"Billy" Scott has five boys, that three of them have gone 
into the military service of their country and that the 
others are liable to slip away at any moment when their 
father and mother are not looking. 

The first newspaper work of Alfred Sorenson, in 
Omaha, was in setting type on the Bee in 187L The 
following year he was city editor of that paper; went on 
the Republican as city editor in 1881 and returned to the 
Bee as managing editor three years later. When the 
Bee company was organized he was made secretary there- 
of. In 1887 he went on the Herald as managing editor 
under the ownership of John A. McShane, who sold the 
paper the following year. In 1889 Mr. Sorenson became 
managing editor of the Republican, then owned by Fred 



60 Omaha and Omaha Men 

Nye and Frank Johnson, with Nye and Rothacker as 
editors. In 1890 he became connected with the Denver 
News ; then he went to Salt Lake where he was city editor 
of the Tribune for a short time. From Salt Lake he went 
to Butte, Montana, to take the business management 
of the Butte Miner, a paper owned by United States 
Senator W. A. Clark. From Butte he went to Portland, 
Oregon, and for four years was city editor of the Ore- 
gonian and managing editor of the Evening Telegram 
for three and a half years. He spent the year of 1898 
in San Francisco employed on the Examiner and the 
Call. Returning to Omaha in 1899 he was city editor 
of the Bee for a year. In the fall of 1900 he began the 
publication of the Omaha Examiner. He received his 
title of "Senator" by announcing himself a candidate 
for the United States Senate on a platform declaring that 
he stood for the classes as against the masses and assert- 
ing that the "dear people" are but a lot of voting cattle 
in political campaigns. This was done for advertising 
purposes. He had one vote pledged to him and that 
one vote he received. This was in 1904. In 1910 he 
was again a Senatorial candidate under the primary law. 
He put up his filing fee of $50 and the Bee inquired: 
"Where did Sorenson get that $50?" In the primary 
election Mr. Sorenson received 2,550 votes, being fourth 
in the race. He also announced himself a candidate 
for Congress for the same object — advertising himself. 
And he got the advertising. He says that no one can 
deprive him of the title of "senator" for it cost him $50; 
that it was a good investment and that he doesn't need 
the salary. Mr. Sorenson is a graduate of the Harvard 
Law School. In addition to his newspaper work he pub- 
lished two Histories of Omaha — one in 1876 and the other 
in 1889. 



Newspapers and Newspaper Men 61 



One of the most "unusual" men ever connected with 
the Omaha press was John H. Pierce. He traveled for 
the Bee and as he journeyed he talked and talked and 
talked. But he sent in bunches of names (accompanied 
by the cash) to be added to the paper's subscription 
list. One Fourth of July he proposed to start to the re- 
cently discovered Black Hills gold mines from the Omaha 
fair ground via balloon. A big crowd assembled to 
see him off but it was found that the quality of gas, 
made for the purpose on the grounds, was too heavy 
to permit of the balloon rising. The next day it was 
filled with gas down town supplied by the gas company 
and an ascension was made for a short distance and thus 
the affair ended. Another feat, more successful, attempt- 
ed by Pierce was to walk across Farnam street from the 
Grand Central Hotel on a tight rope. For some years 
Pierce has been living in Oakland, California, where 
he is a Justice of the Peace and the last I knew of him 
he had an office near the court house, where marriage 
licenses are issued and, to catch the trade in that line 
he displayed a large sign announcing that he would 
perform marriage ceremonies at half the current rates. 



At what is now the intersection of Cuming and 
Twenty-fourth streets there used to be a fine grove 
of trees. Here were located several saloons. It was 
a favorite camping place and often there would be quite 
a number of people gathered in that grove as they 
stopped on their way west. The "Military road," estab- 
lished by the government in the 50's, started off to 
the northwest at that point angling its way across the 
Jesse Lowe farm. 



62 Omaha and Omaha Men 

AN EARTHQUAKE EXPERIENCE 

The late John S. Collins was one of the best known men 
in Omaha. The firm of G. H. & J. S. Collins, dealers in 
harness and saddlery, did a large business through a 
wide extent of country. John S. was a hunter of big 
game and many were the days he spent on the plains 
with General Crook, Buffalo Bill, and many prominent 
army ofificers. At the time of the San Francisco earth- 
quake and fire he was in that city. It was a terrifying 
experience and for two days he was moving about from 
one point to another as the flames drove the people back 
to the westward. He started with a trunk and grip. 
Some young men tied a rope to the trunk and dragged 
it along for him some time and he then told them to 
abandon it. These young men he brought over to Oak- 
land where I was living and I helped them to get something 
to eat. Mr. Collins I took to my house. He was sup- 
plied with a letter of credit and a number of drafts of 
$100 each. He also had a return ticket but he wanted 
to bring to Omaha one of the young men referred to and 
did not have cash enough to cover the expense. The 
Oakland banks were all closed and no one knew when 
they would resume business and so every one was dis- 
posed to hold on to what money he had in hand. 

I was afraid to risk letting him have the fifty dollars 
he said he needed but took him to some business men I 
knew. One of these offered to let him have $25 but 
Mr. Collins said that was not enough. Later on in the 
day he said he thought he could get along with that sum 
and we went back to my friend who then said he was 
afraid to let go of even $25. Then I suggested that he 
buy a railroad ticket, pay for it with one of his $100 



An Earthquake Experience 63 

drafts, and get the balance in change. He took posi- 
tion in a long line of people desirous of getting tickets 
and when he finally reached the window and handed 
out his draft he was told to step aside and not block 
the way for cold cash was the only thing current for 
railroad tickets. As he stepped back a man who stood 
a few steps from the head of the line asked to see the 
draft, then asked him to endorse it, and handed him 
five twenty-dollar gold pieces for it. On the evening 
train headed eastward were two happy passengers — 
John S. Collins and his protege. A few days later I 
received from Mr. Collins a letter enclosing $25 in bills 
which he said was to repay me for the $25 I had loaned 
him. As I had not loaned him any money I at once 
returned it. 

The retail grocery firm of Pundt & Koenig, on Far- 
nam street, was especially popular with the Germans 
of Omaha and vicinity. They were in a small frame 
building and business was carried on in a sort of rough 
and ready fashion. It has been said that a man could 
step on a side of bacon near the front door and slide 
to the back of the room without difficulty. Prosperity 
came to them and they put up a fine store building 
with modern facilities for the care and handling of goods 
and with plate glass windows. A stock of goods was 
installed and the doors thrown open to the public. Nat- 
urally Pundt & Koenig expected a resumption of the 
pleasant relations formerly sustained with their German 
friends. Nothing doing. The German friends said that 
if Pundt & Koenig expected them to pay for the plate 
glass windows and the fine fixings they were mistaken 
and it is a fact the firm had to build up an entirely new 
line of customers. 



64 Omaha and Omaha Men 

SUIT OUT OF THE ORDINARY 

One Sunday morning services in some of the Omaha 
churches had a "number" not on the regular program — 
a talk of an earnest sort from Thomas H. Tibbies, then 
a reporter on the Herald. 

In 1879 a party of 21 Ponca Indians made their 
escape from the Indian Territory and returned to their 
former home on the Omaha reservation about 70 miles 
north of Omaha on the Missouri river. Orders were 
received by Gen. George Crook, whose headquarters 
were at Fort Omaha, to arrest the Indians, the party 
being made up of men, women and children, under 
Chief Standing Bear, and return them to the Indian 
Territory. Lieutenant Carpenter was sent to the agency 
with a detachment of soldiers and the Indians were brought 
to Fort Omaha on a Saturday and to be there confined 
until Monday when the journey to the Indian Territory 
was to be resumed. 

On Sunday Mr. Tibbies learned of the presence of 
the Indians at the Fort and was permitted by Gen. 
Crook to talk with them through an interpreter. His 
sympathies were aroused in their behalf and when he 
returned to Omaha he asked permission of several pastors 
to tell their congregations what he had learned in regard 
to the Indians. The interest of his hearers was at once 
aroused, the story was printed in the local papers Mon- 
day morning, and the entire city became interested 
with the result that a writ of habeas corpus was sued out 
in the United States District Court, Elmer S. Dundy, 
Judge, requiring Gen. Crook to show cause why the 
Indians should not be released. 

A. J. Poppleton and John L. Webster, two of the most 
prominent lawyers in Omaha, volunteered their services 



Suit Out of the Ordinary 65 

in behalf of the Indians and United States District 
Attorney Lambertson represented the government. The 
entire group of Indians was present at the trial, which 
lasted two days and was not concluded until in the night 
of the second day. The court room was thronged, many 
ladies being present and much concerned in the 
outcome. The testimony of the Indians was taken 
through an interpreter and it was a pitiful story they 
told of their long tramp through western Kansas and 
western Nebraska, then sparsely settled, in making 
their escape from Indian Territory. They had but lit- 
tle food and in other respects the journey was one of 
great hardship. 

Of course Gen. Crook and Lt. Carpenter had no per- 
sonal interest in respect of the return of Standing Bear 
and the others to Indian Territory but had simply been 
carrying out the orders of the war department. When 
Judge Dundy announced his decision, directing the re- 
lease of the Indians, the latter were surrounded by a 
throng of whites — men and women — and there was a 
scene of handshaking after the fashion of a Presidential 
reception at Washington. 

SOME CUTS AND FILLS 

It is difficult to realize that an immense amount of 
work was done to bring Farnam street to its present 
grade in the business part of town. At the northeast 
corner of Farnam and Eighteenth stood a substantial 
brick house — the home of Gov. Saunders. The site is 
now covered by the City Hall. Here two cuts were 
made to a total depth of 38 feet. The court house site 
was a hill and on the Farnam street side of the block a 
cut of 30 feet was made. 



66 Omaha and Omaha Men 

Three hundred feet west of Twentieth street on Far- 
nam telegraph poles were used by City Engineer Andy 
Rosewater to mark the proposed fill and property owners 
affected were up in arms against this radical change in 
grade. However, when they saw the resulting increase 
in real estate values in that vicinity after the work was 
completed, they had no further complaint to make. 

Sixteenth street property owners south of Farnam 
were also filled with consternation when City Engineer 
Rosewater turned his attentions in that direction. Just 
south of Jones street a cut of 41 feet was made; between 
Howard and Jackson there was a cut of 21 feet and be- 
tween Harney and Howard the cut was 22 feet. All 
of this portion of south Sixteenth was devoted to resi- 
dence purposes, the houses, as a rule, were small and the 
property was owned principally by people of small means. 
Inmany instances the improvement of the street by the ex- 
treme change of grade worked a hardship on the property 
owners and a considerable percentage of them appealed 
to the district court from the award made to them by 
the Board of Appraisers. 



The first ferry boat to be operated here was put in 
service by William D. Brown in 1853. It was a flat 
boat propelled by oars, but the business was exceedingly 
profitable and when the town was platted, the next 
year, Mr. Brown owned one-seventh of it. He passed 
his life here and was always enthusiastic in reference 
to the prosperity that would come to the town of which 
he had seen the first stakes driven. One of his daughters 
is the wife of Alfred Sorenson. 



A Civil War Episode 67 

A CIVIL WAR EPISODE 

Here is a story in illustration of the character of my 
brother William A. Bell who was killed in Omaha in 
1915 by being run over by a fire truck: 

The regiment of which he was a member in the Civil 
war, the Fifth Iowa Cavalry, was with Gen. McCook 
in what was called the McCook raid — by a force sent 
out from Atlanta by Gen. Sherman to destroy the rail- 
road south of that city by which supplies were brought 
to the Confederates. The affair proved a failure and 
the Union Cavalry barely escaped capture as a whole — 
many of the command landing in Andersonville prison. 

Reaching the Chattahoochie river in a demoralized 
condition those who had escaped stripped their horses 
and compelled them to swim across the river, the soldiers 
with their saddles and accoutrements getting across 
in detachments by means of a rope ferry. As my brother 
was on the point of landing he saw his horse mounted 
by a soldier who galloped away. Being left thus dis- 
mounted he ran to a house alongside the road and sat 
down on a porch having made up his mind to be taken 
prisoner and preferring that to being shot as he attempt- 
ed to escape on foot. 

There were many young girls in the house and they 
were delighted with the situation as groups of Union 
cavalrymen dashed past on their way northward and, 
on the other side of the river, occasional vollies of shots 
showing that the Confederates were in close pursuit. 
The girls insisted that the entire command would be 
either killed or captured. An open door from the porch 
was opposite a window on the other side of the house 
and my brother, looking through the door and window, 



68 Omaha and Omaha Men 

saw a black man riding an old gray horse, bareback and 
with a blind bridle. As he turned the corner he was 
called to by my brother to come up to the porch and 
dismount which he did. 

My brother grabbed up a quilt from off a bed for 
use as a saddle, jumped on the old gray, and started for 
the road. As he passed out of the gate from the house 
he thought he should do the polite thing with the young 
women who had done what they could to entertain him 
during his involuntary stay as their guest, and so he 
bowed as he lifted his old soft hat with a hole through 
which his hair protruded at the top. (In those days 
Uncle Sam's soldiers were not so well dressed as — well, 
let us say as is the " Dandy Sixth " of Omaha for example.) 
Urging his steed along to top speed — and he found the 
gray was not of running stock — he came to where a line 
of Union cavalry was stretched across the road and as 
others came up the line became so strong that pursuit 
by the Confederates was abandoned. 

In this line my brother discovered his own horse and 
demanded him of the soldier who was mounted on him. 
The latter refused to give the horse up and, my brother, 
a stout lad six feet tall, yanked him ofif and made 
him a present of the old gray with bed quilt and blind 
bridle thrown in. 

ONE MAN»S DEATH MADE OMAHA 

No man in Nebraska was more familiar with the early 
history of Omaha than was the late J. Sterling Morton 
in whose honor Nebraska owes a monument in order to 
perpetuate the memory of one of the brainiest and most 
useful men this nation has produced. In addition to 
his other high qualities — and they were many — he was 



One Man's Death Made Omaha 69 

~ ' ■] 

a charming writer and his "Conservative" — the paper 
he published for a number of years as a sort of offset 
to Bryan's Commoner — compared favorably with Ad- 
dison's Spectator in respect of style and composition. 
At a meeting of the Nebraska Historical society on Jan- 
uary 13th, 1891, Mr. Morton read a paper entitled 
"Early Times and Pioneers," from which the following is 
quoted : 

"By the death of Gov. Burt, Secretary Cummings 
became acting governor of Nebraska. Up to, and at 
the time of his death, Gov. Burt made Bellevue the capi- 
tal of the Territory. Had he lived the first legislature 
assembled would have been there convened, there would 
have been located the permanent capital and there would 
have been built the commercial city of this common- 
wealth; there would have crossed the continental rail- 
road and Omaha would have been only a name, for Belle- 
vue is the natural gateway for the railroad — from Belle- 
vue to the great Platte. 

"The death of a man unknown to fame — merely the 
governor of a frontier Territory 300 miles beyond the 
terminus of the farthest western-reaching railroad, 
on a calm sunshiny day in October, 1854, at the old log 
mission house in Bellevue, changed the course of commerce 
of a continent from its natural to an artificial channel. 
Some of the contented and comfortable, well-to-do, far- 
mers of Sarpy county in the vicinity of Bellevue would 
have been millionaires today and some of Omaha's 
millionaires would have been now comfortable and whole- 
some farmers upon the very lands which are now covered 
by pavements and the beautiful creations of modern 
architecture had Governor Burt only lived a few years 
more. 



70 Omaha and Omaha Men 

"But History will make no record illustrating the 
mere ceasing of a breath, the mere stopping of the pulsa- 
tions of a single heart, which made plowmen of possible 
plutocrats at Bellevue and plutocrats of possible plowmen 
at Omaha." 

In this same paper Mr. Morton describes the make- 
up of the first Territorial legislature of Nebraska in the 
course of which he says, of the lower house: "And Andrew 
Jackson Hanscom, of Omaha, discharged with great 
mental and physical muscularity and in the most mas- 
terful manner the functions of the speakership. His 
eye was always alert to recognize and his ear to hear 
Andrew Jackson Poppleton who, then as now, was among 
the foremost lawyers, thinkers and speakers in Nebraska. 
The two men by their intellectual force and courage 
wielded great influence and Andrew Jackson never had 
in any House of Representatives a yoke of namesakes 
who better reflected his own ability, pluck, and strength 
of purpose." 

EXPERT TESTIMONY IN DEMAND 

Some boys were playing with freight cars standing 
on a side track of the Union Pacific railroad company. 
The thumb of one of these boys was injured by being 
caught between the bumpers. He was taken to the 
office of a prominent surgeon by the father who was 
told that an amputation of the thumb was necessary. 
The father, a man named Johnson, asked to have a post- 
ponement of the operation until he could bring the 
mother in order to get her consent. The request was 
granted and Johnson hurried out to his home with a 
hack and brought his wife. 



Expert Testimony in Demand 71 

During his absence the thumb was cut off and put 
in a bottle of alcohol. Father and mother were in great 
distress over the amputation for they hoped it would 
not be necessary. After thinking the matter over they 
employed Chas. A. Baldwin to bring suit against the sur- 
geon claiming $5,000 damages. The surgeon employed 
John C. Cowin. On the trial the bottle of alcohol and 
its contents were in evidence. Several doctors testified 
for both plaintiff and defendant and there was much 
handling of the thumb as the trial progressed. 

The jury disagreed — standing eight in favor of the 
boy. Then Attorney Baldwin stated to the court that 
the case was a much better one than he had anticipated 
and asked leave to amend his petition and make the 
claim $10,000 instead of half that sum. Permission 
was granted. Previous to the second trial the country 
had been scoured for doctors by both sides. Those 
for the plaintiff testified that there was no occasion for 
amputating the thumb; those for the defense testified 
that amputation was absolutely necessary. Of course 
the handling of the thumb on the first trial had left it 
in a much less "natural" condition than at the previous 
trial and, doubtless, that fact aided the defense. The 
jury found for the surgeon. 



The first time I ever saw Buffalo Bill was in the hat 
store of a Mr. Hall on Douglas near Thirteenth. Ned 
Buntline had published a novel exploiting Cody and 
Hall told him that his wife was reading that story and 
that if he would go to the Hall home, a few blocks up 
Douglas street, he would make him a present of the best 
hat in the store. Cody said he would rather pay for 
his hats. 



72 Omaha and Omaha Men 

THE OLD EXPOSITION BUILDING 

Omaha has now a big auditorium which cost about 
a quarter of a million. Its predecessor, as a public build- 
ing, was the frame structure put up in 1888 on land 
which belonged to A. J. Poppleton. It had a frontage on 
Capitol avenue of 264 feet from 14th to 15th and a 
depth of 120 feet. The ''moving spirit" in the erection 
of that building was Isaac Miner, for the last ten years 
secretary of the Elks Lodge of Omaha, with its member- 
ship of more than 1600. This is the story he told me in 
respect of the exposition building: 

"I saw that vacant ground on Capitol avenue and it 
struck me that a building for general uses could be put 
up there to good purpose. I presented the proposition 
to Fred. W. Gray and he became interested at once. 
The result was that we secured a lease from Mr. Pop- 
pleton for a term of 99 years at a rental of $1|200 a year 
for the first five years with a revaluation every five years. 
The company, which was incorporated, consisted of 
Fred W. Gray, Max Meyer, Wm. W. Wallace, John A. 
McShane, B. F. Smith, John A. Wakefield and myself. 
Max Meyer was president of the company, Mr. Wallace, 
treasurer and I was secretary. 

"The building was opened with an operatic festival 
and during the five years many of the most famous 
musical and theatrical people in the world were seen in 
that building. Patti sang there and, up to that time, 
it was said that the $11,000 and more which she received 
for her concert in the exposition building was the largest 
amount she had ever received for one concert. Many 
were the bicycle contests (the contestants riding on the 
old fashioned high wheels then in use) that were witnessed 



John M. Thurston 73 



in that building and other entertainments of a varied 
character were held there. 

"We paid $40,000 for the building. At the end of 
the first five year term Mr. Poppleton raised the annual 
rental to $4,800 and we turned the property over to him. 
Not long after that it was burned." 

JOHN M. THURSTON 

In this publication I wish to pay tribute to the mem- 
ory of one who recently passed away mourned by a host 
of those who remembered him and admired him in hap- 
pier days. 

It is a fact not generally known, perhaps, that Mr. 
Thurston would have been president of the United States 
if he had consented to accept the nomination for Vice 
President when McKinley was nominated in 1900. It 
was only through the persistency of leading men in the 
convention that Roosevelt accepted the nomination 
for second place on the ticket. 

As chief solicitor of the Union Pacific John M. Thurs- 
ton occupied a high place in the roll of attorneys of the 
west. A. J. Poppleton, who secured that responsible 
place for him on his own retirement, told me many years 
ago, that he considered him the most promising of all 
the young lawyers of Omaha. As senator from Ne- 
braska he became one of the leaders in that body and 
was a member of the national republican committee in 
the campaign of 1896. As a jury lawyer he had no 
superior at the Omaha bar and in his arguments before 
the court he was equally strong. 

A notable illustration of his power was in the trial 
of a case where two young men of the name of De Groat 



74 Omaha and Omaha Men 



had been indicted on the charge of arson in connection 
with the burning of their hat store in a frame building 
on Farnam street opposite the Grand Central Hotel. 
Nathan Burnham was district attorney and the insur- 
ance companies with which the stock destroyed was 
insured employed Thurston to aid Burnham in the prose- 
cution of the case. 

The two young men came from New York City and 
brought letters of introduction to members of a prominent 
church in Omaha. On the trial of the first of these cases 
(in fact only one was tried) many members of that church 
gave their moral support to the accused by attending 
the trial and in other ways expressing their sympathy 
for him. On the adjournment of the court one evening 
the case was closed with the exception of the closing 
argument for the state which was to be made by Thurs- 
ton the following morning. 

In one of the Omaha papers that morning was printed 
an article written by a lady of that church in which she 
upbraided Thurston for his connection with the case. 
She said, in that connection, that he was receiving blood 
money in an effort to send an innocent young man to 
the penitentiary. These brothers were twins and short- 
ly before this trial Mr. and Mrs. Thurston had lost 
twin boys by death within a few days of each other, 
which fact was alluded to by the writer of the article 
referred to. 

If that "innocent young man" had had any chance 
of acquittal before the publication of this letter he had 
none afterward. From the sole of his feet to the crown 
of his head Thurston stood thrilling with indignation 
as he addressed the jury. The attack upon him was 



Their Former Homes 75 

so cruel, so unwarranted, that every fibre in his being 
was aroused in resentment. Never, in the history of 
the old court house that stood on the corner of Farnam 
and Sixteenth, was there heard an address to a jury that 
surpassed that of John M, Thurston on that occasion. 
A verdict of conviction was promptly returned. 

An incident in the case was the fact that Frank 
Currier, a photographer, was sleeping in a back room of 
his gallery on the floor above the De Groat hat store and 
it was by the closest call that he escaped burning to death. 
The poor fellow was so wrought up by this experience 
that he soon afterward committed suicide. 

One of John M. Thurston's chief characteristics was his 
kind heart. No one ever appealed to him in vain for aid. 
Thousands of dollars he gave away in an unostentatious 
way. As counsel for the Union Pacific company at a time 
when the granting of passes was the custom of all of the rail- 
road companies he helped many men and women in this 
regard where help was an urgent need. 

THEIR FORMER HOMES 

To Lewis S. Reed, a resident of Omaha since 1863, 
the author is indebted to a refreshing of his own recol- 
lection as to the former homes in this city of some of its 
old-time citizens. 

On the block bounded by Eighth, Ninth, Howard 
and Jackson, now the site of big buildings, was the home 
of Thomas Davis whose grist mill was in the immediate 
vicinity to the southward. The four-story building 
occupied by the Burkley Brothers stands on the ground 
on which were located the home and law office of James 



76 Omaha and Omaha Men 

t . ' — ^= 

M. Wool worth. On the opposite side of Howard were 
the residences of Capt. Wilcox and Wm. Stephens, who 
constituted the dry goods firm of Stephens & Wilcox. 

Continuing west on Howard: "Dick" McCormick 
lived at the southwest corner of Thirteenth and Howard. 
The ground is now covered with a three-story brick. 
On the site of the big auditorium George Armstrong 
and George A. Hoagland lived. At the northeast corner 
of Fifteenth and Howard was the home of Joseph F. 
Sheely, now the site of the Carlton Hotel, and on the 
northwest corner of this street intersection Chas. J. 
Karbach lived for many years in a two story frame 
house. On this lot was built a hotel first known as the 
Karbach but it is now the Boquet. The Sunderland 
building occupies property on which stood the home of 
Chas. Turner, and George A. Hoagland is having a busi- 
ness structure put up at the northwest corner of Howard 
and Sixteenth where his home was recently. 

At the northwest corner of Ninth and Harney is still 
standing the brick house built by Jesse Lowe and which 
was the home for many years of the late Thos. L. Kim- 
ball, the general passenger agent of the Union Pacific. 
The site of the John Deere block was occupied by the 
St. Phllomena church; Judge George B. Lake's home 
was on the ground now the site of the L. V. Nicholas 
Oil Company, and on the corner directly west was the 
residence of George W. Doane now the site of the National 
Printing Company's big building. The Ezra Millard 
home was on the south side of Harney between Eleventh 
and Twelfth where now stands a four-story brick build- 
ing, and Dr. Augustus Roeder lived at the northeast 
corner of Twelfth and Harney. The H. W. Cremer 



Their Former Homes 77 

t. . - - ~ ' — 

building on the north side of Harney between Twelfth 
and Thirteenth occupies the ground on which stood 
one of Omaha's pioneer hotels — the St. Charles. On 
the south side of Harney, corner of Thirteenth, was the 
Douglas House and across Harney to the north was the 
Farnam House. At the northeast corner of Harney 
and Fourteenth was the blacksmith shop of J. B. Allen, 
and at the northwest corner was Tom Murray's collection 
of all sorts of odds and ends and known far and wide 
as Murray's Curiosity shop. On this lot he put up for 
a hotel the first six-story building erected in Omaha. 
Murray was a bachelor and an odd character. It was 
his intention, previous to the donation of property by 
the late Byron Reed, to give the city a lot for a public 
library. On the present site of the City National Bank's 
15-story building formerly stood a two-story brick house — 
the home of Chas. Balbach, who was brought here from 
New Jersey to take the superintendency of the Omaha 
Smelting works when they began operations. John I. 
Redick and Mayor Wilber had their homes on the north 
side of Harney between Fifteenth and Sixteenth and the 
big Keeline office building stands on ground on which 
was formerly the home of A. D. Jones and, later, of 
Capt. Chas. B. Rustin who died at Nome, Alaska, in 1900 
and the body was brought to Omaha for burial. The 
Tom Murray lumber yard covered (and "covered" is 
a good word to use for the material was strewed around 
in a promiscuous manner) the site of the present Y. M. 
C. A. building. 

Coming to Farnam street: The first Boyd theater 
was built, at the northeast corner of that street and 
Fifteenth, on the former location of Wilbur & Coff- 
man's livery stable; John I. Redick and St. John Good- 



78 Omaha and Omaha Men 

rich owned homes on the south side of Farnam between 
Fifteenth and Sixteenth; Joseph Millard's home was on 
the ground now covered by the Omaha National bank; 
Edward Rosewater's was on one of the lots on which the 
Bee building now stands; that of Gov. Alvin Saunders 
was at the northeast corner of Eighteenth and Farnam, 
the present location of the City Hall, and on the west 
side of Eighteenth opposite the Saunders home was a brick 
building which was the residence of Judge John R. Porter. 
Later it was owned by Mrs. George M. O'Brien, whose 
husband was the colonel of the Sixth Iowa cavalry, and 
then by T. W. T. Richards, who was a member of Col. 
John S. Mosby's Confederate cavalry. 

J. P. Black owned a cottage at the southwest corner 
of Douglas and Sixteenth on which was, later, built the 
first Y. M. C. A. building in Omaha. Next on the west 
was a two-story house owned by Allen Root. A. R, 
Dufrene had his home to the westward in that block and 
on the corner John A. Horbach lived for many years. 
Henry Pundt lived on the opposite corner, west, and 
on the ground occupied now by the five-story building 
at the southeast corner of Eighteenth and Douglas 
was a barn owned by Gov. Saunders immediately in rear 
of his home on Farnam street. A. J. Hanscom lived 
on the property on which the Masonic building, now 
abdut completed, stands. The Hotel Fontenelle oc- 
cupies the site of the former residence of Oscar F. Davis. 
Dr. George Tilden owned the two lots now being excavat- 
ed by the Nebraska Telephone company for its 18-story 
structure. He had three houses on this property and 
his home was in one of them. 



Had Confidence in Omaha 79 



HAD CONFIDENCE IN OMAHA 

It was in 186B tliat Dr. George Tilden came to Omaha 
and Omaha has been his home ever since. Soon after 
his marriage to Miss Ida Clegg he bought two lots at 
the northwest corner of Douglas and Nineteenth and 
there their home was built. Later on two other houses 
were built on this property. Dr. Tilden was an earnest 
advocate of radical street grades in that part of the city 
and, in fact, in this connection incurred the ill will of 
many of his neighbors, including A. J. Hanscom, whose 
home was on the property directly east of the Tilden 
home. He said that he had secured that elevation 
for the express purpose of living upon it for the remainder 
of his life and he objected to having it ruined by a 
cut on Douglas street. In fact there was not only one 
cut but three made at that point on Douglas. 

When asked if he was not surprised that he should 
receive $100,000 for his lots, as he did three years ago, 
Dr. Tilden said he was not; that, on the contrary, he told 
his wife that the time would come when they would 
get that price for the ground if they held on to it, and 
that Mrs. Tilden replied: ''Well, we will hold on to it." 
It is an odd circumstance that Dr. Tilden was congratu- 
lated, at the time of the sale, by Casper E. Yost, presi- 
dent of the Nebraska Telephone company, over what 
he said he considered an excessively high price received. 
Three years later Mr. Yost's company paid O. C. Redick, 
who bought the property from Dr. Tilden, just twice 
$100,000 for the lots and they are now making an ex- 
cavation for the putting up of an 18-story building on 
the property. 



80 Omaha and Omaha Men 

VARIOUS AND SUNDRY 

When Major T. S. Clarkson was postmaster of Omaha 
there was employed as janitor in the building a man who 
had but little to say about himself. A sum of money 
accidentally left in one of the rooms one night was missing 
and this man was charged with the theft. He denied 
the charge and Major Clarkson became interested in his 
behalf but was unable to prevent his arrest and convic- 
tion with a sentence of confinement in the county jail. 
When he was released he disappeared. In a few years 
he called on Postmaster Euclid Martin, who had become 
interested in the man's behalf and who was postmaster 
at the time of his release. The man said he would like 
to arrange for a meeting with the two postmasters and 
when this was done he repeated his assertions of inno- 
cence of the crime for which he had been punished and 
said he wished to show his appreciation of the kindness 
he had received from the two postmasters and thereupon 
gave each of them $5,000. He bade them goodbye and 
was never more seen in Omaha. 

Pierce C. Himebaugh and Nathan Merriam were the 
first men to put up a grain elevator in Omaha. A number 
of years ago when I was living in San Jose, California, 
I heard that Himebaugh was lying quite ill at the Hotel 
Vondome in that city. I went at once to see him. He 
told me he had bought a quarter of a block of land in 
West Omaha; that he had plans drawn for a fine residence; 
that he was just fifty years old; that he had proposed to 
spend the remainder of his life in leisure and that now 
he was dying. He said this with the tears streaming 
down his face. A few days later six of us, five of whom 
were former residents of Nebraska, carried his body 
out of the hotel and arranged for sending it to Omaha 
for burial. 



Various and Sundry 81 

At the Academy of Music on Douglas, between 13th 
and 14th, was maintained for many years a high-class 
stock company and it frequently supported some of the 
leading theatrical people of our own country and England. 
Henry M. Stanley was located here for a time as rep- 
resentative of the New York Herald, and was somewhat 
infatuated with one of the girls of the stock company. 
A local newspaper man made some comments in regard 
to her which did not please Stanley and he undertook 
to thrash the newspaper man but did not quite succeed. 
It will be remembered that he was sent to Africa by the 
New York Herald "to find Livingstone." 

Isaac S. Hascall was one of Omaha's most active 
citizens for many years. He was State Senator from 
this county when the Senate sat as a Court of Impeach- 
ment with Gov. David Butler on trial. He was a member 
of the constitutional conventions 1871-75 and several terms 
was a member of the city council. He was a fighter for 
what he thought was right. Hascall was not a dressy 
man. On an occasion of going with members of the coun- 
cil to Ottumwa and Burlington to see what sort of water 
works those cities had when Omaha was about to engage 
in securing a water system, the members of the party 
generally carried grips as it was expected the trip would 
occupy several days. Hascall's personal effects con- 
sisted of a paper parcel containing a shirt he had bought 
on Tenth street on his way down to the railroad station. 

I saw, the other day, for the first time in many years, 
the first house I ever owned. It is a cottage. No. 2506 
Davenport street, and I had it built in 1877. A few 
years later I built a two story house just west of it which 
is also still standing. I first bought the corner lot and 



82 Omaha and Omaha Men 

half of the lot west of Byron Reed for $650 and the other 
half of the second lot I bought of T. J Beard a few years 
later. Wm. I. Kierstead lived just across the street. 

When Stephens & Wilcox set the pace for Omaha 
merchants by installing plate glass windows in their 
dry goods store on Farnam the clerks took advantage 
of the absence at lunch of Capt. Wilcox to draw a line with 
soap entirely across one of those expensive sheets of glass. 
It looked precisely as though the glass were broken. 
Then they lingered around to hear the lurid language 
which they anticipated the captain would use when he 
took in the supposed catastrophe. Wilcox gave one 
look at the glass and passed into the store without a 
word. He explained afterward that all the words in 
his vocabulary were insufficient to properly express 
his sentiments. 

Milton Rogers was the pioneer stove and tinware 
merchant in Omaha. He first located in Council BluflFs 
and it is said that when he made his first sale of a cook 
stove in Omaha he brought it across the intervening 
five miles in a wheelbarrow. This was soon after the 
platting of Omaha. He lived to build up a very large 
business here and was always one of Omaha's leading 
and most highly respected citizens. As he advanced 
in years the business was turned over to his sons and this 
good man entered upon a season of leisure that some- 
times proved tedious — judging from an expression he 
made to me when I called at the store to get some facts 
from him for publication in the history of Omaha which 
Judge Savage and I were writing. I asked him when it 
would be convenient to him for me to talk with him. 
*'0h come at any time," he said. "I have nothing to 



Various And Sundry 83 

do now and I was a great deal happier when I was work- 
ing at the bench making twenty dozen tin cups in a day. " 
That may not be the exact number of tin cups he men- 
tioned but whatever the number was it is quite certain 
that it was as many as any skilled man in that line could 
turn out in a day. 

When M. E. Smith came to Omaha to engage in the 
wholesale dry goods business he was given a reception 
by the Board of Trade. There was a dinner and speeches 
and in responding to an address of welcome Mr. Smith 
said that he regretted one thing in establishing himself 
here and that was that he had no competitors in his line. 

E. P. Vining was one of the old-time freight agents 
for the Union Pacific. He was not a mixer but he suited 
Jay Gould, presidefit of the company, and was invited 
by Gould to make him a visit in New York. The story 
goes that Gould put him in the way of cleaning up $10,000 
in about a week in stocks. These deals being closed 
Mr. Vining said: "Mr. Gould, what shall we do next?" 
whereupon Mr. Gould said: ''Perhaps we had better go 
back to Omaha next." Vining's residence was some 
distance from the company's headquarters and it was 
his custom to walk home in the evening with his course 
distinctly marked by the shells of peanuts he had eaten 
on the way. After leaving the Union Pacific he made 
a contract with the United Railways company, of San 
Francisco, to manage its business for five years at an 
agreed salary. He was discharged before the contract 
expired and sued for the remainder of the salary due 
him and won out. 

Forty-eight years ago S. H. Buffett began selling 
groceries on the east side of Fourteenth between Farnam 
and Harney. He is still at it in the same building and 



84 Omaha and Omaha Men 

during those 48 years he has handled groceries enough 
to load a freight train sufficiently long to reach part 
way around the globe. Come to think of it in that fact 
lies proof that he is an honest man and has the confi- 
dence of the public. 

Assistant Postmaster James I. Woodward could 
write a book chock full of interesting things in respect 
of Omaha's postoffice — its various homes until it became 
fixed in the splendid structure covering a block in which 
it is now located, and the men who have filled the office 
since he became assistant postmaster in June, 1882. 
Presidents of our country, senators and congressmen, 
and governors of Nebraska and mayors of Omaha, have 
come and gone but Mr. Woodward stays on the job 
giving the utmost satisfaction to a city he has served 
so efficiently that he has not been disturbed in his posi- 
tion during this long period notwithstanding the many 
changes in the postmastership since 1882. In fact 
Mr. Woodward's connection with the postoffice dates 
back for a number of years before he was appointed to 
his present responsible position. 

The late John Evans was a leading citizen here for 
a score or more of years. He was not a talker but a doer 
and always enthusiastic as to the future of this city. 
His good wife died recently at Salt Lake City at an ad- 
vanced age. Their son, John. B., is tax agent of the 
Union Pacific at Salt Lake. His wife was a sister of Mrs. 
S. H. H. Clark. Another son, Edward, lives in Seattle 
and represents in a very efficient way a number of large 
lumber concerns. Hjc began his career in the lumber 
business in the employ of Fred W. Gray. 



Various and Sundry 85 



Thos. J. Beard and Henry Lehman, pioneer painters 
and wall paper dealers in this city, are both still living 
here. Mr. Lehman, assisted by his sons, is still actively 
engaged in the wall paper line as is Mr. Beard's son, 
Bert, but the father has retired from business. 

The recent appointment by President Wilson of 
Constantine J. Smythe to the distinguished position of 
Chief Justice of the Court of Appeals of Washington, 
D. C, is gratifying to a host of friends of Mr. Smythe. 
I first knew him as mailing clerk of the Omaha Herald. 
He was then a student at Creighton college and his 
duties at the Herald office were attended to at night. 
Speaking of this a few days ago to Assistant Postmaster 
James L Woodward he said that he had just congratu- 
lated Mr. Smythe on this appointment and had called 
attention to the fact that when the Herald was brought 
to the postoffice by Mr. Smythe at 3 o'clock in the morn- 
ing he (Mr. Woodward) received it. There is a difference 
with these two excellent gentlemen between then and now 
and b©th have earned the success in life which has come 
to them. 

Jack Morrow was a well known character in former 
days. He owned a home here but carried on a famous 
ranch near Cottowood Springs on the road to Denver 
for many years. One time when he was in Omaha he 
hailed a man on Douglas street who had come over from 
Iowa with a wagon box full of apples. He bought the 
load, told the man to take out the hind end gate to his 
wagon, drive up the hill on Douglas and let the town boys 
take care of the apples as they rolled down hill. It 
somewhat reminds one of one of Bob Burdette's stories 
where a man drove a wagon load of apples through the 



86 Omaha and Omaha Men 

Streets of Burlington calling out "appuls! appuls!" 
A boy climbed into the wagon from the rear and beckoned 
to comrades who silently followed his example. The 
man continued his cry of "appuls! appuls!" for some 
time without attracting buyers and when he looked around 
he found a wagonbox full of boys and the boys were full 
of apples. James McShane says he heard Morrow give 
an order to a Douglas street saloon keeper to make up 
enough lemonade to wash off a buggy in which Morrow 
and another man had been riding about town. 

Thomas F. Hall, formerly postmaster of Omaha, 
was a seaman for many years and enjoyed the reputation 
as being one of the most skilled navigators our country 
ever produced. He is also a writer on scientific subjects. 
He is publishing a book in connection with the Peary- 
Cook controversy in which he declares that it was not 
Peary but Cook who discovered the North Pole, or at 
least came as near to it as it is possible to do so. He 
makes a complete anylasis of the books published by 
Peary and Cook showing each day's travel made by 
both and says that the argument is all in Cook's favor. 

What was considered a large real estate transaction 
in the 60*s was the sale by A. J. Hanscom of his residence 
property bounded by Sixteenth, Seventeenth, Capitol 
avenue and Davenport, on which were a large house and 
other improvements. The buyer was St. A. D. Balcombe 
and the price, including furniture, was $17,000. 

Jack Galligan was a popular chief of the fire depart- 
ment. One of the Omaha papers, noting his return 
from a brief absence, said: "Jack Galligan's back." 
A West Point paper copied the item and added: "Well, 
what's the matter with Jack Galligan's back? Jack 



Various and Sundry 87 

is a friend of ours." In those days there was frequent 
mention in the Omaha papers of the arrival in town of 
"Moses Stocking, the sheep king of Saunders County." 
One day it appeared thus: "Moses Stocking the sheep, 
king of Saunders County." 

Elsewhere in this booklet is a story told by Charles 
H. Pickens as to his having obtained a foothold in the 
wholesale grocery house of Paxton & Gallagher, of which 
he is now president, by reason of his having a knowledge 
of shorthand. His experience in this regard is like that 
of thousands of others. That of George W. Loomis, 
of the Burlington Railroad Company at their headquarters 
in Omaha, is another case in point. He paved the way 
to his now responsible position by becoming a short- 
hand assistant to Manager Holdredge. James B. Haynes 
became managing editor of the Bee by reason of his 
knowledge of shorthand. 

I was well acquainted with John W. Pattison who 
published Omaha's first newspaper — the Arrow, printed 
in the office of the Council Bluffs Bugle in 1855. He 
came west as a correspondent of the New York Herald. 
In 1861 he was publishing a weekly paper at Sindey, 
Iowa. The last time I saw him was in the court house 
at St. Louis. He was at that time the court reporter 
of the St. Louis Republican — now St. Louis Republic. 

James McShane and George W. Homan were pioneers 
in the livery business in this city. The former is still 
a resident of Omaha but Mr. Homan died a number of 
years ago. His stable stood on the present site of the 
three story building erected by Steele & Johnson on the 
southeast corner of Harney and Thirteenth and his resi- 
dence was on the corner directly west. 



88 Omaha and Omaha Men 

Perched high in the air at the southwest corner of 
Dodge and Nineteenth is the former home of one of the 
leading families of Omaha for many years — that of 
John R. Meredith who came here from Philadelphia. 
When it was built the house was one of the most expen- 
sive residences in the city — the interior being finished 
regardless of expense. Mr. and Mrs. Meredith were 
held in the highest esteem as were also Mrs. Meredith's 
sisters, the Misses Collier, who made their home with 
the Merediths. One of the sisters married Dr. J. C. 
Denise. 

Joel T. Grififen, who died March 10th, 1884, was a 
useful man to this city and state. He came to Nebraska 
in 1856 and took up a large tract of land about three 
miles southwest of Omaha and that was his home until 
the day of his death. He was one of the first men in 
Nebraska to plant out trees extensively and he also plant- 
ed an orchard at a time when there were but few in 
Nebraska. His home was on an elevation from which 
his groves could be seen for many miles in every direction. 
The house was framed in St. Louis and brought by 
steamer from that city. Mr. GrifTen was a progressive 
and successful farmer and was noted for his public spirit 
and kind heart. He was a member of the territorial 
Legislature for several terms and was twice elected a 
member of the state Legislature. Mr. Griffen was post- 
master of Omaha during the years 1870 and 1871. 

A tough joint was the old Buckingham theatre on 
Twelfth street. In 1886 a number of good women banded 
together and secured a lease on the building. Business 
men came to their aid financially and in a short time a 
transformation had been wrought. Where had formerly 



Various and Sundry 89 



been a low theatre, with saloon and gambling house 
attachments, a restaurant run on a plan designed to 
barely cover expenses, a reading room, and a room for 
holding religious services were substituted with the most 
gratifying results. 

For many years South Tenth was the chief retail 
street of Omaha. Then Sixteenth, north from Farnam, be- 
gan to delevop as a business thoroughfare. South Tenth 
lost its prestige, and real estate south of Farnam and 
east of Twelfth steadily decreased in value. In course 
of time that part of the city attracted the attention of 
men engaged in the wholesale line and it is now built 
up almost solidly and a great increase in the value of real 
estate in that district has resulted. 

The late Andrew J. Simpson came to Omaha in the 
50's and engaged in wagon-making. Later on, when 
people became prosperous enough to want carriages 
and buggies, he supplied that want and kept at it for 
about half a century. He gave employment to a large 
number of men, and was one of the most useful and popular 
citizens of Omaha during his long life. In the big build- 
ing he had erected at the southwest corner of Fourteenth 
and Dodge he provided for a public hall which was for 
many years in active demand for various purposes. 
One of these was for the dances given by the "Pleasant 
Hours Club" — a social organization which included 
in its membership Omaha's "elite" of those days. 

When William A. Paxton, John A. McShane, Alex 
Swan, Thomas Swobe, L. M. Anderson, Frank Mur- 
phy, P. E. Her and their associates planned to estab- 
lish stock yards south of Omaha — since grown to be 
third in importance, if not second, in the world — they 



90 Omaha and Omaha Men 

naturally desired to secure the land necessary for their 
purpose at fair figures. Keeping their plans to themselves 
they employed a real estate dealer of the name of Shaller 
to secure options on cornfields and orchards and cattle 
pastures from various owners. In a short time curiosi- 
ty was aroused and land owners became suspicious to 
such a degree that it was found impossible to buy the 
land needed at any cut-rate figures. 

The first brick church building erected in Omaha 
was built by the Congregationalists, Rev. Reuben Gay- 
lord pastor, near the northwest corner of Sixteenth and 
Farnam. When Mr. Redick built the three-story 
structure on that corner lot he enclosed the little church 
but left an entrance from Sixteenth street, and for a 
number of years it was used for church purposes, public 
meetings, etc. Doubtless the first "church fair" ever 
held in Omaha and probably in Nebraska was one ar- 
ranged by Mrs. Gaylord and other good women in the 
church, few in number they must have been, and it 
is to the credit of the sparsely settled community (in 
1855) that there was raised at this fair between $600 
and $700 for church furnishings. 

An active career has been that of Ed. Johnston. 
He served two terms as city treasurer of Omaha and has 
also been the mayor of South Omaha. There he was 
for a number of years occupied with the building of houses 
to sell on installments to men of modest means and thus 
many were provided with homes who might otherwise 
have found this a difficult thing to accomplish. 

E. O. May field, now a member of the State Board 
of Control, gave many years of his life to newspaper 



In Conclusion 91 



work in Omaha. He was a concise and forceful writer 
as well as an interesting one. He is making an excel- 
lent record in his present official position. 

Omaha has ten officers in the United States navy — 
Lieutenant Commander Louis Shane, Lieutenants Paul 
P. Blackburn and Nathan W. Post, Lieutenants Harry S. 
McGuire, Frank J. Wille, David C. Patterson, Alex 
Charlton, Harold R. Keller, George E. Fuller and Ensign 
Casper K. Blackburn. 

IN CONCLUSION 

The writing of these reminiscences has been a pleas- 
ing task and the kind letters I have received from many 
old friends, who learned of my purpose, have been very 
gratifying. For these I wish to express appreciation. 
County and city officials have also been very courteous 
when I have had occasion to call upon them. To my 
old-time friend, Alfred Sorenson, of the Omaha Ex- 
aminer, I am especially indebted. His newspaper ex- 
perience in Omaha dates back to 1871 and he has a vivid 
recollection of important local events and of the men 
connected therewith then and hence has been an aid 
to me in refreshing my own recollection. In addition 
he turned over to me the facilities of his office and there- 
by rendered me a service of value. 

When I was last in Omaha, fifteen years ago, my 
brother William A. Bell, was living in Dundee. He is 
not there now. As he was crossing Dodge street at the 
intersection of Sixteenth August 29th, 1915, he was run 
over by a fire truck which dashed around the corner, 
sustaining injuries from which he died Sept. 1st. I have 



92 Omaha and Omaha Men 

looked up the report of the coroner's inquest on that 
occasion and find that the verdict of the jury was that 
his death was the result of an unavoidable accident. 

My brother began life for himself on a farm of 200 
acres which he and I owned on Bell Creek (named after 
our father in 1854) in Washington county. It was a 
struggle for many years but better times came. We 
sold that farm (increased to half a section) and each of 
us bought one of a quarter section in Sarpy county. 
My brother engaged in the dairying business with a herd 
of Jerseys and, by dint of industry and good manage- 
ment, aided by his family, prospered. He bought 
still another farm near by and several years ago turned 
his property in Sarpy county over to his boys to manage 
and moved to Dundee Place. He bought a good resi- 
dence property there and had three other houses built. 
At the time of his death his family consisted of his wife 
and four sons — Edwin, Fred, David and Albert; and two 
daughters — Cora, wife of Chas. Pflug, of Sarpy county, 
and Laura, the wife of Dell Newton, who is the repre- 
sentative at San Antonio, Texas, of the Carpenter Paper 
Company, of Omaha. 

A sturdy, honest character, was William A. Bell. 
That death should come to him as it did is distressing. 



Index 



93 



Adams, Wm.L 21 

Adams, Chas. Francis 20 

Ambrose, Geo. W 12, 32 

Ambrose, J. C 32, 33 

Anderson, Bess 44 

Ames, Geo. W 28 

Ames, Geo. C 28 

Allan, James T 43 

Allan, Jessie 43 

Allan, Blanche 43 

Armstrong, Geo 27, 76 

Abernethy, Clara 44 

Abbott, Katherine 44 

Boyd, James E 33 

Brown, Chas. H 18, 32 

Brown, Wm. D 66 

Brown, Randall K 16, 48 

Blackburn, Thos. W 58 

Bell, Graham 38 

Bell, William A ...67 

Barlow, Milton 45 

Burkley, Vincent 24 

Burkley, Frank J 24, 48, 52 

Burkley, Harry V 48 

Beard, T. J 85 

Buffett, S. H 83 

Baker, Ben S 12 

Baker, Alex H 28 

Baldwin, Chas. A 32, 71 

Bemis, Geo. P 35, 36 

Bennett, Helen 44 

Bracken, J. H 21 

Bartlett, Edmund M 12, 32 

Blair, Joseph H 12 

Bohan, J. M 3S 

Baxter, Irving F 12 

Beals, F. A 32 

Baumer, John 25 

Baumer, Bertha 44 

Bowen, Lillie 44 

Biendorf, Louis 25 

Boggs& Hill 29 

Bvers. W. N 24 

BerHn, Richard 34 

Burns, D. R 32 

Belt, W. T. B 3S 

Byrne, James 1 44 

Balton Bros 36 

Connell, Wm. J 16,32,33 



Cowin, John C. . . . 18, 32, 34, 71 

Caldwell, S.S 45 

Caldwell, S. S. Jr 48 

Crounse, Lorenzo 33 

Clark, S. H. H 28, 30 

Creighton, Edward 19, 50 

Creighton, John A 20 

Creighton, James 20 

Creighton, Joseph 20 

Creighton, John D 20 

Crocker, Chas 9 

Gumming, Thos. B 34 

Chase, Champion S. . . 26, 32, 33 

Chase, Clement 55 

Clarkson, J. R 12 

Clarkson, T. S 80 

Coffman, Victor 17 

Coburn, Wm 21 

Collins, Johns 46, 62 

Chadwick, A. M 21 

Clark & French 25, 36 

Conley, Stella 44 

Carter, J. R 38 

Christie, J. W 38 

Creigh, Fred 49 

Conkling, Dr. J. R 31 

Dahlman, James C 44 

Doane, Geo. W 12, 32, 76 

Dundy, Elmer S 34, 64 

Davis, Fred H 4, 46, 48 

Davis, Thos 75 

Dewey, Chas. H 21 

Drake, Luther 45 

Dietz, C. N 44 

Dickey, J. J 37 

Dwyer, Dr. T. J 44 

Droste, Edward 44 

Donnelly, S. F 55 

Duffie, E. R 12 

Doll, Leopold 22 

Davis, H.J 12 

Day, George H 12 

Dufrene, A. R 21 

DeLaney, John 32 

Deuel, Chas 49 

Dickerson, Chas. T 12 

Dumdnt, J. H 36 

Dewey & Stone 25 

Estabrook, Experience 32 

Estelle, LeeS 12 



94 



Index 



Evans, John 84 

Evans, John B 30, 84 

Evans, Edward 84 

English, James P 12 

Eddy, John M 27 

Erck, JohnH 21 

Elgutter, Morris 25 

ElUot, V. A 32 

Fa wcett, Jacob 12 

Fitzmorris, Thos. J 58 

Festner, F. C 58 

Festner, Julius 49 

Floerke, Wm 13 

Frenzer, John N 49 

Frenzer, Joseph 49 

Gould, Jay 21 

Groff, Lewis A 12 

Gilbert, Geo. 1 32 

Gibson, Thomas 24 

Gibson, L. B 32 

Griswold, S. V. G 57 

Grebe, Louis 49 

Galligan, Jack 86 

Griffen, Joel T 88 

Gaylord, Rev. Reuben 90 

Gurley, Wm. F 52 

Gaslin, Wm 32 

Gray, Fred W 72,84 

George, C. C 36 

Gregory & Hadley 36 

Gifford, Dr. H 32 

Gratton, Chas. H 49 

Goble, M. H 28 

Hitchcock, Phineas 33 

Hitchcock, Gilbert M 33, 52 

Hamilton, Chas. W 45 

Hamilton, Chas. W. Jr 48 

Hamilton, Frank T 48 

Hamilton, Fred P 48 

Harrison, Chas F 31 

Howe, John D 32 

Hopewell, M. R 12 

Huntington & Sharp 25 

Huntington, Chas. S 49 

Hanscom, A. J. 29, 70, 78, 79, 86 

Huntington, CoUis P 7 

Hascall, Isaac S 81 

Himebaugh, P. C 28, 80 

Hopkins, Mark 7 

Hopkins, A. P 45 



Hurlbut, Henry M 22 

Hammond, Blanche 44 

Hammond, "Witch Hazel" .16 

Hillis, Madelaine 44 

Hoagland, Geo. A 76 

Henry, A. W 32 

Horbach, John A 27, 31, 78 

Howard, Ruth 44 

Hawes, Patrick 32 

Hill, Elizabeth D 31 

Hall, Thos. F 86 

Hall, Chas. E 38 

Hall, Geo. W 30 

Haynes, James B..26, 47, 51, 56 

Hartman & Gibson 36 

Hannah, E. 1 38 

Hellman, M 25 

Hagan, Dr. A. M 44 

Irvine, Frank 12 

Irwin & Ellis 25 

Her & Co ...25 

Ish, J. K 25 

Jones, A. D 5 

Johnson, Frank 48 

Johnston, Ed 90 

Jones, S. B 26 

Kountze, Augustus .... 6, 46, 48 
Kountze, Herman .... 28, 46, 48 

Kountze, Luther 46, 48 

Kountze, Charles 46, 48 

Kennedy, John L 33, 37 

Kennedy, Howard 12, 49 

Kennedy, B. E. B 32 

Kennedy, Frank A 57 

Kimball, Thos. L 34, 76 

Kimball, Thos. R 49 

Kinder, Albert 58 

Keysor, W. W 12 

Ketchum & Burns 25 

Kelly, J. E 32 

Kelly, A. S 38 

Korty, L. H 37 

Kellogg, Wm. Pitt 6 

Kierstead, Wm. 1 82 

Karbach, Chas. J 76 

Karbach, Arthur P 49 

Kopecky, Louis 44 

Lake, Geo. B 11, 76 

Lake, Fred W 49 

Lowe, Dr. Enos 6, 28 



Index 



95 



Lowe, Jesse 28 

Lowe, W. W 28 

Lowe, Fred B 49 

Lowe, Jesse, Jr 49 

Loomis, Geo. W 87 

Lyman, C. W 38 

Leslie, Chas 12 

Lehman, Henry 85 

Lehman, J. H. F 25 

Lobeck, CO 33 

Little, Mary T 44 

Lowman, A. A 38 

Larsen, Hans 44 

Lambert, C. C 38 

Miller, Dr. Geo. L. 5, 6, 23, 27, 50 

Millard, Ezra 45, 76 

Millard, Joseph 33,45,56,78 

Millard, Alfred 45,52 

Millard, Ezra, Jr 48 

McShane, John A. 20, 28, 33, 72 
McShane, James H.. . 20, 86, 87 

McShane, Edward 20 

McShane, Thomas 20 

McShane, Felix 20 

Manderson, Chas. H 32, 33 

McCague, John L 36 

Murphy, Frank 28, 30 

Murphy, Andrew 25 

Megeath, James G 5, 30 

Megeath, Win G 48 

Metcalfe, Richard L 34, 56 

Mosby, JohnS 40 

Mercer, Dr. S. D 27 

Mercer, David 33 

Meyer, Max & Bro 25, 72 

Meyer, JuUus 25 

Mayne, C. E 36 

Morton, J. Sterling 68 

Morrrow, Jack 85 

Marshall «& Lobeck 35 

Mead & Jameson 36 

Mothershead, A. M 32 

Morton, John F 32 

Meiklejohn, Geo. D 33 

Mar.h, Wm 49 

Morgan & Gallagher 25 

Maginn, L. F 32 

Mason, Walt 54 

Morseman, E. M 38 

Morseman, E. M. Jr 38 



McDonald, J. R 38 

Merriam, Nathan 28, 80 

May, Frank A 38 

McAdams, A. F 38 

McNett, Edith 44 

Miner, Isaac 54, 72 

Mayfield, E. 90 

Mauer, Ed 25 

Moore, Lois 44 

Mulvohill, Eva 44 

Morton, Geo. T 49 

Moriarity, Edw. F 54 

Neville, James 11, 32, 33 

Neville, Elmer S 48 

Nye, Fred 55 

Nielsen, Carl 44 

Ogden, Chas 12 

O'Connor, Thos. J 32 

Osborne, Florence 44 

O'Brien, George M 32, 78 

O'Brien, Moses 49 

O'Brien, Margaret 43 

Poppleton, A. J 

.... 10, 27, 32, 35, 64, 70, 72 

Poppleton, Elizabeth 43 

Paddock, J. W 33 

Pickens, Chas. H 27, 47, 87 

Powell, Clinton N 12 

Perkins, Chas. E 27 

Perkins, Alonzo 13 

Pollock, Alex A. 54 

Pollock, Channing 54 

Pixley, W. A 38 

Phelps, Viola 44 

Pierce, John 61 

Payne, Geo. E 36 

Paxton & Gallagher 47 

Pritchett, Geo. E 32 

Patrick, J. N. H 30 

Patrick, Robert 49 

Peck, Edw. P 49 

Page, C. W 32 

Peabody, Wm. L 32 

Porter, John R 40 

Peter, Van L 58 

Patton, P. H 38 

Pratt, Guy H 38 

Redick, John L. ..13, 16, 17, 32 

Redick, Wm. A 48 

Redick, O. C 48, 79 



96 



Index 



Redick, Elmer S 48 

Redick, Geo. M 48 

Reed, Byron 35,42, 77 

Reed, Lewis 50, 75 

Reed, Harry 36 

Reed, A. L 36,48 

Reed, Guy R. C 12 

Rees, Samuel 34 

Richards, T. W. T 40, 78 

Rosewater, Edward.. .51, 52, 78 

Rosewater, Andrew 66 

Rosewater, Victor 49, 52 

Rosewater, Charles 52 

Richardson, Lyman 50 

Rogers, Milton 82 

Rogers, Herbert 48 

Rogers, G. S 48 

Rooker, W. V 52 

Redfield, Joseph B 49 

Ridson, M. R 49 

Savage, James W 

14, 15, 18,32, 33, 43 

Strickland, Silas S. A. 26, 32, 33 
Saunders, Alvin 

33, 34,36,39,40, 65 

Stanford, Leland 7 

Sherman, Wm. T 9 

Smythe, C.J 34,85 

Sorenson, Alfred 14, 59, 91 

Stephens & Wilcox.. . .25, 76, 82 

Seldon, O. B 28 

Sweesey, W. F 27 

Smith, M. E 83 

Smith, E. V 27 

Steele & Johnson 47 

Schneider, Fred 25 

Stull, Homer 54 

Shriver, W. G 30,36 

Slater, E. M 36 

Sutton, A. L 12 

Sears, W.G 12 

Simpson, A. J 89 

Sheely, Jos. F 76 

Shoaf Bros 25 

Shaw, Thos 25 

Summers, Dr. J. E 44 

Scott, C. S 12 

Scott, Wm 59 

Slabaugh, W. W 12 

Snyder, Wm 22 

Snyder, Adam 25 



Stone, E. L 31 

Sutphen, J. J. & D. C 25 

Shiverick, Chas 25 

Spann, J. S 32 

Swartzlander, Albert 32 

Swartzlander, Kate 44 

Stephens, Lucien 44, 49 

Stammers, D. 44 

Sawyer, Francis 44 

Thurston, John M 

11,32,33, 34, 73 

Train, Geo. Francis 

14, 27, 35,43 

Troup, A. C 12 

Thayer, John M 33 

Taft, John 33 

Tilden, Dr. Geo 37, 78, 79 

Touzalin, A. E 27, 46 

Tanner, John M 58 

Tibbies, Thos. H 34, 57, 64 

Tuttle, L. G 28 

Tukey, A. P 36 

Tobitt, Edith 44 

TePoel L. J 44 

Tunneclif, Geo. D 36 

Upton, Mark & Co 36 

Vail, Theodore 38 

Vining, E. P 83 

Wakeley, Eleazer 12, 17 

Wakeley, Arthur 12, 48 

Woolworth, James M 

14,32,35, 76 

Webster, John L. .32, 33, 34, 64 

Woodrough, J. W 34 

Woodbridge, Sands F 55 

Woodbridge, Mary 44 

Whitney, Asa 8 

Walton, W. C 12 

Wakefield, John A 72 

Wiley, H. B 22 

Williams, Ed. B 48 

Wallace, W. W 43, 72 

Wallace, Geo. C 36 

Wallace, Hugh E 36 

Woodward, James 1 84, 85 

Woodman, Chas 47 

Wolf, Edna 44 

Walker, Rena 44 

Wilcox, J. C 27 

Yost, Casper E 38, 79 

Yates, H. W 46,48 



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